Fact or Myth; Is a High Protein Diet bad for your Kidneys?

FACT OR MYTH:

A HIGH PROTEIN DIET IS BAD FOR YOUR KIDNEYS

 This one has been around for a long time. Chances are your mother may have preached to you about this one. It has come to the forefront again in recent years with studies indicating consuming more protein aids in fat loss.

The relationship between dietary protein and renal function has been studied for over half a century. The study listed below is a review and discussion of decades of studies (111 of them) on the relationship (or lack thereof) between high protein diets and renal (kidney) disease.

Frankly, the paper is rather long and boring and filled with terms and facts too complicated to cover in detail here. But here’s the gist of the abstract:

“This paper reviews the available evidence that increased dietary protein intake is a health concern in terms of the potential to initiate or promote renal disease. While protein restriction may be appropriate for treatment of existing kidney disease, we find no significant evidence for a detrimental effect of high protein intakes on kidney function in healthy persons after centuries of a high protein Western diet.”

However, the second sentence should not be ignored. It addresses the fact that protein restriction may be appropriate for anyone with existing kidney disease.

I happen to be one of those people with existing kidney disease-Hereditary Polycystic Kidney Disease. (PKD).  It is hereditary and not caused by a high protein diet. And yes, I eat a high protein diet with my doctor’s approval.

A high protein diet is bad for your kidneys- -MYTH

Do not take this as medical advice.

If you have, or suspect you have, any form of kidney disease, (and there are many forms other than PKD) you should discuss this with your physician and a kidney specialist. 

HERE’S THE REF STUDY and a list of the studies they reviewed:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16174292