Conquering Kidney Disease with the Power of Plants

The previous blog post was about The Magic of a Whole Food Plant-Based Diet on High Blood Pressure. This week we will focus on another one of the Top 10 Killers of Americans—kidney disease. According to the United States National Center for Health Statistics, 4.9 million adults in the US are diagnosed with kidney disease. This number is equivalent to about 2% of all adults within the country. Each year about 50,000 people die from nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis, which are various forms of kidney disease. [1]

The image shows an illustration of a diseased kidney. [2]

Kidney disease, also known as kidney failure, describes the gradual loss of kidney function. Healthy kidneys filter wastes and excess fluids from your body, which are then excreted through the urine. [2] The Mayo Clinic states that “Diseases and conditions that cause chronic kidney disease include type 1 or type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Factors that may increase your risk of chronic kidney disease include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart and blood vessel (cardiovascular) disease, smoking, and obesity.” [2]

The clinic also explains that kidney failure can lead to complications such as “fluid retention, which could lead to swelling in your arms and legs, high blood pressure, or fluid in your lungs, cardiovascular disease, weak bones and an increased risk of bone fractures.” [2]

There is no need to worry though, as kidney failure may be both prevented and treated with a whole food plant-based  (WFPB) diet. A great way to help prevent kidney failure is to try and eliminate the risk factors and causes, many of which come from animal foods.

Harvard researchers published a study in the Clinical Journal of American Society of Nephrology, which found that “diets higher in animal protein, animal fat, and cholesterol may be associated with microalbuminuria (MA.)” [3] MA is a term to describe a moderate increase in the level of urine albumin. It occurs when the kidney leaks small amounts of albumin into the urine.

On the left, fat (black) completely fills and plugs the lumen of this postglomerular arteriole in the kidney of a human diabetic patient. On the right, fat (black) of somewhat crystalline nature completely fills and plugs this capillary loop which lies immediately beneath Bowman’s capsule. [5]

In fact, a study published in the American Journal of Physiology-Renal Physiology found that “consumption of animal fat significantly alters kidney structure and function.” [4] This was shown by a study published in The American Journal of Pathology, which showed animal fat clogging up the insides of autopsied human kidneys. [5]

Not only does animal fat contribute significantly to causing kidney disease but so does animal protein. A study published in the journal Nephron compared a vegetable-based diet and an animal-based low-protein diet and found that the “progression of chronic renal failure (CRF) is slower on diets based on soy protein than on diets based on animal protein.” [6]

Graphs show that plant proteins do not stress the kidneys, while animal proteins do.

The study also observed that “Animal protein intake has a profound effect on normal renal function. In acute and chronic studies on normal humans, it induces glomerular hyperfiltration by causing increases in renal blood flow and reducing renal afferent arteriolar vascular resistance, and this is associated with an increase in urinary protein excretion. On the other hand, administration of an equal quantity of vegetable protein does not alter any of these parameters.” [6]

Researchers who published their findings in The Tohoku Journal of Experimental Medicine found that just a few hours after eating a tuna salad sandwich the pressure on the kidneys increased significantly. Quite remarkably after eating a tofu salad sandwich with the same amount of protein, there was no impact on the kidneys in both diabetics and non-diabetics. [7] The animal protein caused inflammation which the plant protein did not.  

Another study discovered “Dietary acid load (DAL) is determined by the balance of acid-inducing foods which is rich in animal proteins (such as meats, eggs, and cheese) and base-inducing foods which is rich in fruits and vegetables (such as raisins, apples, peaches, spinach, and cauliflower).” [8]

Contrasted with acidic foods, alkaline foods such as those mentioned above, reduce the accumulation of ammonia in the kidney. They also improve renal function and reduce complications such as muscle wasting, bone disease, and insulin resistance. [9]

Animal foods may lead to tubular toxicity or the damage to small, delicate, urine-making tubes in the kidney. Animal foods tend to be acid-forming, while plant foods are relatively neutral or even alkaline and help counteract the acid. The best way to stop chronic kidney progression may be to simply eat WFPB or at least increase the amount of plant food eaten.

Once again, we can come to the conclusion that a WFPB diet will help greatly prevent kidney failure or even reverse it in some cases. The long-awaited hero that will conquer kidney disease is eating more plants and excluding animal foods altogether!

Sources:

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/kidney-disease.htm

[2] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/chronic-kidney-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20354521

[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2863979/

[4] https://www.physiology.org/doi/pdf/10.1152/ajprenal.00068.2011

[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1942678/

[6] https://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/45021

[7] https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/tjem1920/159/2/159_2_153/_pdf/-char/en

[8] https://bmcnephrol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2369-15-137

[9] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28117137

[10] https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-not-to-die-from-kidney-disease/

The Magic of a Whole Food Plant-Based Diet on High Blood Pressure

Last week we looked at Preventing and Reversing Stroke with a Whole Food Plant-Based Diet (WFPB). This week we will look at the number one leading risk for death in the world—High Blood Pressure. [1] According to a paper published in the journal Hypertension, “Hypertension currently affects nearly 78 million adults in the United States and is also a major modifiable risk factor for other cardiovascular diseases and stroke.” [2] That’s almost about one in three adults in the US alone who suffer from hypertension.

Hypertension, commonly known as high blood pressure, is a condition where the long-term force of blood against artery walls is high enough that it may cause health problems in the future. The Mayo Clinic states that “Blood pressure is determined both by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure.” [3]

The clinic also explains that high blood pressure can lead to complications such as a heart attack or stroke, aneurysm, heart failure, weakened and narrowed blood vessels in your kidneys, thickened, narrowed or torn blood vessels in the eyes, metabolic syndrome, trouble with memory or understanding, and dementia. [3]

The table above shows that blood pressure decreases as age increase in populations following a WFPB diet. [4]

Well, this sounds like a horrible problem that must need a complicated solution, right? Contrary to belief, researchers have known since the 1920s that high blood pressure is totally avoidable. A study published in The Lancelet in 1929 studied a Kenyan population whose “diet was based primarily on cereals, principally maize, with legumes, vegetables, fruit, and wild greens” and found that their blood pressures decreased as they grew older. On the other hand, the blood pressures in people not following a whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet increased as they grew older. [4]

The researchers then collected data from a native Kenyan hospital where the people ate WFPB and found that out of over 1800 patients who were admitted, zero cases of high blood pressure were found. Additionally, there was not a single case of heart disease including arteriosclerosis and chronic interstitial nephritis. [4]

The table above shows that 16 year olds and 70 year olds had the same blood pressures in populations eating WFBP. [5]

Another study, also published in The Lancelet, was conducted in rural China. Researchers found that the people had blood pressures of about 110/70 their entire lives. Seventy-year-olds and sixteen-year-olds had the same blood pressures. The authors wrote that “There is no tendency towards an increase in the blood pressure with age.” [5]

Kenya and China have largely different diets and lifestyles, but they also shared a commonality. In both places, the populations were following mostly WFPB diets. This can also be seen in populations in America and Europe. A statement from the American Heart Association stated that “In industrialized countries, where elevated Blood Pressure (BP) is commonplace, individuals who consume a vegetarian diet have markedly lower Blood Pressures than do nonvegetarians.” The statement also read, “Some of the lowest BPs observed in industrialized countries have been documented in strict vegetarians.” [6]

The largest study of those eating plant-based diets to date, with 89,000 Californians, compared non-vegetarians, with flexitarians, those who ate no meat, except fish, those who ate no meat at all; and those who ate no meat, eggs, or dairy. This being a study on Adventists, even the non-vegetarians ate more fruits and veggies, didn’t smoke and led healthier lifestyles than many non-vegetarians.

The table shows that each step closer to WFPB gives benefits by decreasing both hypertension and diabetes. [7]

The results showed that there was a step-wise drop in hypertension rates, as well as in diabetes and obesity, as people ate diets closer to WFPB. [7] Ideally, eating strictly plant-based wipes out most of the risk of hypertension, but even eating closer and closer, but not strictly adhering, to a WFPB diet will yield positive results.

A study conducted by Dr. McDougall and colleagues studied the effects of a low-fat vegan diet after just 7 days. They found that following such a diet “results in significant favorable changes in commonly tested biomarkers that are used to predict future risks for cardiovascular disease and metabolic diseases.” [8] In fact their blood pressure numbers were so good that “most of the patients discontinued their antihypertensive and antihyperglycemic medication.”

The patients had to stop their medications because the root cause of the problem was dealt with. If a patient is on blood pressure medication with healthy blood pressure, then blood pressure can drop too low and lead to dizziness and fainting. So, there was no choice but to get off the pills, which was wonderful news anyways!

Similar to the blog posts on Heart Disease, Cancer, and Stroke, a simple conclusion appears unavoidable once more. A WFPB diet reverses or cures most cases of high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. The more calories from plants a person eats, the greater the benefits they gain from the power of plants! Go plant powered and dump hypertension forever!

Sources:

[1] https://www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/GlobalHealthRisks_report_full.pdf

[2] https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYP.0000000000000003?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dpubmed

[3] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/symptoms-causes/syc-20373410

[4] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(00)49248-2/fulltext

[5] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(00)86708-2/fulltext

[6] https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/01.HYP.0000202568.01167.B6?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dpubmed

[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4073139/

[8] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4209065/

[9] https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-not-to-die-from-high-blood-pressure/

Preventing and Reversing Stroke with a Whole Food Plant-Based Diet

Last week we looked at the #2 Killer of Americans—Cancer. This week we will look at another deadly killer—Stroke.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, Stroke was the fifth highest cause of death in America in 2016, with 142,142 deaths. [1] Globally, it contributed to an estimated 6 million deaths in 2016. According to the World Stroke Organization, about 1 in 6 people worldwide will have a stroke in their lifetimes. [2] Additionally, stroke claims a life about once every 5 seconds. [3]

How some types of stroke occur

The World Stroke Organization then explains, “Stroke is a condition where the blood supply to the brain is disrupted, resulting in oxygen starvation, brain damage and loss of function. It is most frequently caused by a clot in an artery supplying blood to the brain, a situation known as ischemia. It can also be caused by hemorrhage when a burst vessel causes blood to leak into the brain.”

The organization then continues, “One of the main disease processes leading to stroke is atherosclerosis. There are many other risk factors, including tobacco use, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, harmful use of alcohol, and hypertension” [2]

Just as a reminder, the Mayo Clinic defines atherosclerosis as “the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on artery walls (plaque), which can restrict blood flow.” [4] We already looked at reversing atherosclerosis with a plant-based diet in the blog A WFPB Diet Prevents and Reverses the #1 Killer of Americans—Heart Disease. So this already takes care of one of the major risk factors.

A peer-reviewed article published in the journal Clinical Nutrition aimed at clarifying whether high dietary fiber intake has an impact on incidence and risk of stroke at a population level. They found that “The belief that dietary fiber intake (DFI) is inversely associated with some diseases was postulated 40 years ago, and then enormously fueled and kept alive by a great body of science since. Today, it is therefore generally believed that eating lots of fiber helps prevent obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases such as stroke.” [5]

Dietary fiber can only be found in plants and plant products, none in animal foods, so eating more plants is the best way to increase fiber intake. A paper published in the journal Stroke found that an increase of 7 grams/day of total dietary fiber was associated with a 7% reduction in stroke risk. [6] Increasing fiber intake by 7 grams is pretty simple. It is about equivalent to the fiber in a portion of whole-meal pasta (70g), a piece of fruit (apple/pear/orange) and a serving of tomatoes each day. [6].

Another important risk for strokes is arterial stiffness. Strokes are one of the many complications of arterial stiffness. Another study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition followed 600 children from age 13 in junior high until age 36. The researchers found that “Lower lifetime intake of fiber during the course of young age is associated with carotid artery stiffness in adulthood. Promoting consumption of fiber-rich foods among the young may offer a means to prevent accelerated arterial stiffening in adulthood and related cardiovascular sequelae.” [7]

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This means that even in children around age 13 they could see differences in arterial stiffness depending on diet. This is crucially important for teens and youth like us! The study also found that “relatively small increases in fiber intake throughout the course of life—equivalent to the daily consumption of ∼1 apple or banana or half a portion of broccoli or muesli—might translate to physiologically relevant differences in arterial stiffness in adulthood.” [7]

Note for youth on a Standard American Diet or those consuming animal foods. If you go WFPB now, you are not doing anything too cautious, you are simply reversing the stroke risk and heart disease you already have!

Additionally, the highest incidence of stroke was detected in subjects intaking ≤ 25 g/day soluble and ≤ 47 g/day insoluble fiber. This indicates that one should try to get at least 25 grams of soluble fiber per day and 47 grams of insoluble fiber per day. Soluble fiber can be found in legumes, oats, nuts, and berries. Insoluble fiber can be found primarily in whole grains. [5]

I think it would be helpful for me to include some resources where you can learn more about stroke and even how to prevent and reverse it. The first is a video is titled How To Prevent a Stroke and is a part of Dr. Michael Greger’s How Not to Die series. Another resource is his video library about stroke where you can find many videos about a plant-based diet and stroke.

A simple conclusion arises from all this scientific information. The amount of food a person eats every day is pretty fixed. So to increase dietary fiber, which is only found in plants and not animals, means to replace animal foods with whole plant foods for all of us teens and youth. This is the number one advice by the World Health Organization for a healthy diet. [9]

I found it astonishing that strokes can be reserved by simply following a whole food plant-based diet. Tens of thousands of people die each day from strokes, and most of them can be prevented by following a healthy diet!

Sources:

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/leading-causes-of-death.htm

[2] https://www.world-stroke.org/component/content/article/16-forpatients/84-facts-and-figures-about-stroke

[3] Calculations: Seconds in one year: 60*60*24*365 = 31,536,000

Deaths from Stroke each year: 6,000,000

⇒31,536,000/6,000,000≈5.3

[4] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arteriosclerosis-atherosclerosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350569

[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23317525

[6] https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/STROKEAHA.111.000151?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dpubmed

[7] https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/96/1/14/4571419

[8] https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-to-prevent-a-stroke/

[9] http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/disease-prevention/nutrition/a-healthy-lifestyle