Chronic kidney disease is more prevalent among people above 60 years old. According to the American Journal of Kidney Disease, almost 7.4 million adults in the USA have reported cases of kidney disease from 1988 to 1994 with 35,525 annual deaths caused by nephritis, nephrosis and nephritic syndrome, making it the 8th leading cause of death from 1999 to 2000.

Examples of these kidney diseases include nephritis, nephropathy, hyperfiltration, kidney failure, chronic renal insufficiency, kidney stones and diabetic nephropathy.

Chronic kidney disease generally refers to the gradual loss of kidney function over time. The loss of kidney function causes accumulation of waste, water and toxic substances in the body which is normally excreted by the kidney.  The two major causes of the development of chronic kidney disease are high blood pressure and diabetes. People with diabetes cannot normally process glucose (sugar). The glucose then stays within the body and acts like toxins which cause the kidneys to work harder.  Eventually, the kidneys will get “tired” from the added workload – and then it will fail, which will again cause waste products to stay inside the body instead of being removed. High blood pressure on the other hand, causes damage to the blood vessels of the kidney, causing it to malfunction. Other causes of kidney disease include heredity and most of all, unhealthy diet. Consuming too much salt can pose harm in the kidneys too.

One thing that should be remembered about the dangers of kidney disease is that it is progressive. It gets worse as time passes by. If it is not acted upon immediately, this can eventually develop into kidney failure, which may need dialysis and kidney transplant. Chronic kidney disease also increases the person’s risk of strokes and heart attack.

Vegetables for the Kidney, a study

According to the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, kidney disease patients who follow a vegetarian diet showed lowered phosphorous levels. Results suggest that kidney disease patients could benefit from vegetable consumption, as opposed to meat consumption, in order to avoid the accumulation of toxic levels of phosphorus in the body. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients are told that they must limit phosphorus intake, however, they could not easily get rid of these phosphorus, which may soon lead to heart disease and death.

Sharon Moe, MD and fellow researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and Roudebush Veterans' Affairs Medical Center tested the effects of diet based on vegetables and meat on the phosphorus levels of nine CKD patients. They were asked to stick to a specific diet for a week, and then an opposite diet for the next two to four weeks. At the end of each week, blood and urine tests were conducted on both diets.

Results showed that patients who consumed a vegetable diet had reduced phosphorus levels and decreased phosphorus excretion in the urine of those who were on the vegetarian diet regardless of an equal phosphorus and protein concentrations on both diets. Although they did not discover the reason for this distinction, a grain diet had a reduced ratio of phosphate-to-protein and most of the phosphate is not absorbed in humans because it is in the form of phytate. It was concluded that a certain effect of phosphorus levels in CKD patients was demonstrated based on the protein source in the diet.

The study recommends that patients with CKD must be counseled not only on the phosphorus amount, but at the source of protein in which it is derived. The researchers wrote that if the studies were tested further, it may provide a basis for recommending prevalence of protein vegetarian sources based on grain to CKD patients. This would enable them to have higher protein intake without affecting their levels of phosphorus.

The Magic of Veggies

Vegetables, together with fruits, as we know it contains immeasurable amount of nutrients that is good for all parts of the human body. It is proven in many studies that vegetables contain antioxidants that help stop certain forms of cancer to further develop. It is also a good way to boost a poor diet.

To summarize the innumerable amounts of benefits veggies can bring to your body, here are the top ten reasons why you SHOULD eat your vegetables:

• Gives a soothing effect to blood sugar levels that can help control appetite.
• Reduces risk of high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease and some cancers.
• Helps with feeling full because of fiber.
• Safe to eat a lot without gaining weight since it is a low calorie food.
• Helps in making a person more active because it boosts energy in muscle cells.
• Promote healthy bones through dark leafy greens that contain calcium.
• Reduces risk of developing diabetes.
• Good for hair and skin.
• Helps in promoting the best condition of the eyes and immune system.
• Helps in water retention that could cause bloating.

Tips on how to increase vegetable consumption

Ever since we were young, our mothers have been reminding us to eat vegetables. But as kids, we were picky eaters. We cannot deny that there are some vegetables that do not taste as good as fried chicken or hotdog, yet these vegetables have incomparable amounts of nutrients in it.

Here are some tips on how you could improve your vegetable consumption.

1. Choose a vegetable salad as your side dish instead of the macaroni and cheese. Whip up your very own with whatever you can grab from the fridge – lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, carrots and a little vinaigrette – and then you’re good to go.
2. When eating at restaurants, it is very tempting to give in to the rich aroma of that juicy steak. But hold it. Eat healthy and order for a vegetable dish. You will only have yourself to thank later on in life.
3. Juicing is also a good way to take high amounts of veggies. In juicing, raw vegetables must be used. This way, the more amounts of vegetables you take, the more nutrients that your body takes in.
4. If feeding veggies to kids, you can choose many ways to let them engage in vegetable consumption like getting them to help you prepare the food, add it to soup or you can style them in attractive ways!
5. Plant a garden. The more natural vegetables you are producing, the more you are used to eating them day by day.

Sources
green.yahoo.com
kidney.niddk.nih.gov
ezinearticles.com
eurekalert.org
wrongdiagnosis.com
nkdep.nih.gov