FRIDAY, Nov. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Some people with kidney
disease can improve their health by adding fruits and vegetables to
their diet, a new study indicates.
A second study found that poor nutrition plays a role in the
association between poverty and kidney disease, and a third study
found that black kidney disease patients are more likely to have
uncontrolled blood pressure than white patients.
The three reports were presented Friday at the American Society
of Nephrology's annual meeting in San Diego. Research presented at
medical meetings should be viewed as preliminary until published in
a peer-reviewed journal.
Alkaline therapy is used to treat kidney disease patients with
severe metabolic acidosis (too much acid in the body). Researchers
examined whether there was any benefit to adding fruit and
vegetables -- which are highly alkaline -- to the diets of kidney
disease patients with less severe metabolic acidosis.
The 108 patients in the study were randomly selected to receive
added fruits and vegetables, an oral alkaline medication or
nothing. After three years, consuming fruits and vegetables or
taking the oral medication reduced a marker of metabolic acidosis
and preserved kidney function to similar extents.
"Our findings suggest that an apple a day keeps the nephrologist away," study author Dr. Nimrit Goraya, of Texas A&M College of Medicine, said in a university news release.
The second study included more than 2,000 people and found that
5.6 percent of those who lived in poverty had kidney disease,
compared with 3.8 percent of those who didn't live in poverty. It
also found that those living in poverty had a lower dietary intake
of fiber, calcium, magnesium and potassium, and higher cholesterol
levels.
"An unhealthy diet is strongly associated with kidney disease among poor individuals," study author Dr. Deidra Crews, of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in Baltimore, said in the news release. "Dietary interventions tailored to meet the needs of this population may help to reduce disparities in kidney disease."
The third study looked at blood pressure control among more than
6,600 white, black, Hispanic and Asian adults with kidney disease.
The patients received primary care in a health network serving
uninsured and publicly insured people in San Francisco.
Overall, the patients' blood pressure was nearly 20 percent
higher than national estimates, and blacks had higher rates of
uncontrolled blood pressure than whites, said Dr. Delphine Tuot, of
the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues.
The researchers noted that racial and ethnic minorities are more
likely to develop kidney failure than whites, perhaps due in part
to poorer blood pressure control.
Although the research found an association between diet and
control of kidney disease among patients, it did not prove a
cause-and-effect link.
More information
The American Academy of Family Physicians has more about
chronic kidney disease.