If you have diabetes, this grocery store secret can protect your hard-working kidneys

How much attention do you give to your kidneys? Not much, most likely—especially if you’re in good health.

But if you’re diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, all that can change. Previously ignored factors are suddenly front and center.

Case in point: Your kidneys.

Those two modest bean-shaped organs are quite busy, filtering about 35 gallons of blood every day. That’s an astounding 13,000 gallons per year!

But filtering out waste and excess fluid is just one of many indispensable kidney functions:

  • They balance calcium and phosphorous
  • They make a hormone that’s necessary for red blood cell production
  • They create an active form of vitamin D

So if your kidneys are in trouble, your whole body is in trouble. And if you have type 2 diabetes, your kidneys will be in trouble if you don’t take care of them.

Fortunately, that’s quite easy to do if you follow a few simple rules of thumb…

A new look at kidney disease risks

Recently, a team from Washington State University hoisted a major red flag that should cause some alarm for every person with diabetes.

When the researchers analyzed 10 years of health data for more than 15,000 people, they found that chronic kidney disease (CKD) kills far more people with diabetes than health experts previously thought.

Among the participants who didn’t have diabetes, 9 percent developed CKD, while a shocking 42 percent of diabetes patients developed CKD.

Those in the latter group were at grave risk. They were nearly three times more likely to die during the study period compared to diabetes patients without CKD.

This is a major warning sign for all people with diabetes or other threatening metabolic issues: Don’t wait another minute to start supporting and nurturing your kidney health.

Kidney care starts at the dinner table

In Dr. Marc Micozzi’s Integrative Protocol for Defeating Diabetes, he puts an urgent focus on kidney health, noting that high blood sugar, high blood pressure, and inflammation can take a terrible toll on kidney blood levels.

But he adds, “That doesn’t mean you’re helpless to prevent kidney disease. Quite the opposite, in fact.”

Dr. Micozzi calls diet and nutrition “major factors for preventing kidney disease.” So he begins by recommending these antioxidant, anti-inflammatory fruits and vegetables that will help your entire body fight disease:

  • Apples
  • Blueberries
  • Cabbage (preferably red)
  • Cauliflower (mashed cauliflower is a good low-carb substitute for mashed potatoes)
  • Cherries (a concentrated cherry extract delivers more beneficial ingredients)
  • Garlic
  • Onions
  • Raspberries
  • Red wine (always in moderation)
  • Strawberries

Beyond fruits and veggies, Dr. Micozzi has these additional kidney-friendly food suggestions:

  • Eggs provide high quality protein with essential amino acids, as well as essential fatty acids, and vitamins D and E.
  • Fish is also a good source of high-quality protein as well as omega-3 fatty acids. Try to eat fish at least twice per week.
  • Olive oil is a great source of oleic acid, another anti-inflammatory fatty acid. And of course it’s a key ingredient in the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet, which also helps prevent kidney disease and many other diseases as well.

Your kidneys will love these supplements

When you’re done feasting on foods that are kind to kidneys, you can take a few key supplements to boost your efforts.

Dr. Micozzi notes that high homocysteine (an amino acid) damages blood vessels and increases your risk of CKD and chronic kidney failure. His solution? B vitamins—especially vitamin B12, which helps keep homocysteine in check.

In Dr. Micozzi’s view, a high-quality vitamin B complex supplement is essential, with a minimum of these doses:

  • B6: 50 mg
  • B12: 12 micrograms (mcg)
  • Biotin: 100 mcg
  • Folic acid/folate: 400 mcg
  • Niacin/niacinamide: 50 mg
  • Pantothenic acid: 50 mg
  • Riboflavin: 50 mg
  • Thiamine: 50 mg

He also recommends a daily 400 mg supplement of dandelion, which protects your kidneys and stimulates urine production.

And he cites research that shows how a combination of dandelion and 400 mg of the South African herb aspal (rooibos) helps keep your cells and kidneys properly hydrated, while also supporting overall vitality, physical activity, and agility.

And while you’re adding those supplements, Dr. Micozzi strongly encourages diabetes patients to avoid using cholesterol-lowering statins—a familiar class of drugs he calls a “disaster.”

Besides the fact that statins can boost blood sugar, he says, “They also destroy your muscle tissues, which leads to the production of a dangerous substance called myoglobin. Myoglobin can poison your kidneys as they work to filter it out of your blood.”

Dr. Micozzi offers several more insightful guidelines for complete kidney care, including a number of foods you should limit if you have impaired kidney function. To learn more, refer to his Integrative Protocol for Defeating Diabetes.

Not yet a member? No problem! Simply click here to enroll today, or to read more about this important protocol that can help you prevent or reverse your type 2 diabetes.

SOURCES

“Top 5 Jobs Kidneys Do” National Kidney Foundation, retrieved 12/31/19. (kidney.org/kidneydisease/top-5-jobs-kidneys-do)