Eating a Southern-style diet results in higher death rates in those with kidney disease, according to research published in the August issue of the National Kidney Foundation’s American Journal of Kidney Diseases.
“This is the first study to identify a regionally specific diet pattern that is highly associated with adverse outcomes among persons with kidney disease,” said lead author Orlando Gutiérrez, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “It’s well known that the Southern region has poor health outcomes in a number of different areas including stroke, heart disease and sepsis, and that the style of diet plays a role.”
According to the National Kidney Foundation, modifying lifestyle through healthy diet as well as controlling blood pressure and blood sugar, quitting smoking, regular exercise and maintaining a normal weight, can reduce the risk of kidney disease and related conditions.
Using the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study, the research team identified 3,972 participants who had stage 3-5 chronic kidney disease, but had not started dialysis. They then analyzed dietary patterns in those individuals. Those who primarily ate a cuisine of processed and fried foods, organ meats and sweetened beverages, items popular in Southern diets, had a 50% increase in risk of death over a 6.5-year follow-up period.
While many studies have looked at individual nutrients such as sodium or potassium and their effect on longevity in kidney patients, this study focused on dietary patterns.
“People don’t eat nutrients in isolation,” said Thomas Manley, director of scientific activities, National Kidney Foundation. “This study suggests that those caring for people with kidney disease should be focusing on patterns of eating and reducing processed foods and saturated fat, rather than on individual minerals and nutrients. It’s the overall patterns that are strongly associated with adverse outcomes.”
Surprising Results
The same study showed that while a healthy diet alone — comprised primarily of whole foods, fruits and vegetables – was associated with improved survival, it had no protective benefit when it came to progression to kidney failure.
“This doesn’t mean that eating a healthy diet doesn’t help, but it suggests that healthy lifestyle overall — not smoking, exercising and eating right — the combination of these things is more important for kidney health,” Dr. Gutiérrez said.
Kidney Disease Facts from the National Kidney Foundation
· 1 in 3 American adults is at high risk for developing kidney disease today. The risk increases to 1 in 2 over the course of a lifetime.
· High blood pressure, diabetes, a family history of kidney failure and being over 60 are major risk factors for developing kidney disease.
· 1 in 9 American adults has kidney disease — and most don’t know it.
· Early detection and treatment can slow or prevent the progression of kidney disease.
· Kidney disease risk can be reduced by controlling blood pressure and blood sugar, quitting smoking, regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, and avoiding excessive use of pain medications.
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the leading organization in the U.S. dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease for hundreds of thousands of healthcare professionals, millions of patients and their families, and tens of millions of Americans at risk. For more information, visit kidney.org.
– Submitted by Ellie Schlam of the NKF.