According to the National Kidney Foundation, kidney disease takes the lives of more than 90,000 Americans every year. This number is higher than that of both breast and prostate cancer. Our kidneys are very important and are part of the key to living a long and healthy life, which means we need to keep them healthy. By making small changes to your diet and sleep habits, you can prevent kidney disease in your body.
Replace Salt With Herbs
While eating salt can make food taste better, it can also upset the balance in your blood, which makes your kidneys have to work much harder to remove water from your body. Research done in 2018 for the Journal of Clinical Hypertension proved that eating too much salt can directly lead to kidney disease. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends people to limit their sodium intake to one teaspoon per day, which is about one-third less than the average American consumes.
Replace Salt With Herbs
Limit Your Intake Of Painkillers
The New England Journal of Medicine conducted a study that found that heavy use of painkillers, such as Tylenol or Advil, results in 5,000 cases of kidney failure each year in the United States. It has been noted that the most dangerous time to take a painkiller is after you’ve been fasting. Of course, the occasional painkiller for a headache or backache is okay. Why are painkillers bad? They are dangerous because they decrease blood flow to the kidneys; after some time, this can cause a lot of stress on your kidneys.
Limit Your Intake Of Painkillers
Don’t Underestimate A Cold
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the average person suffers from two to three colds per year. Though these colds seem nothing more than harmless and annoying, you should not treat them like they are nothing. If you leave colds without treatment, your body will produce more and more antibodies. Over a period of time, these antibodies will start to become unhealthy for your kidneys. If you’re feeling sick, you should see a doctor; don’t be like the 72 percent of Americans who stay home from work when they’re sick!
Don’t Underestimate A Cold
Don’t Wait To Use The Restroom
Did you know that holding in your urge to use the restroom is one of the biggest causes of kidney problems? The longer urine stays in your body, the worse it is for you. Urine is a hub for bacteria that shouldn’t be in your body anymore, and the longer it sits, the more bacteria it creates. Eventually, this bacteria will make its way to your kidneys, and when that happens, you’ll wish it didn’t. When you have to go, try not to resist the urge.
Don’t Wait To Use The Restroom
Say Goodbye To Those Cigarettes
It’s no secret in this day and age that smoking is horrible for your lungs and your heart, but did you know that it is equally as horrible for your kidneys as well? That’s right. In a study done in 2000 in Annals of Internal Medicine, chain smokers, both current and former, are put at much higher risk for kidney disease. Using things such as cigarettes creates creatinine in your body, which is harmful to your kidneys. Former smokers have a bit less of a chance of this disease than current smokers, but it’s never too late to quit.
Say Goodbye To Those Cigarettes
Try To Avoid Processed Foods
In order to keep food fresh for longer, companies often add high amounts of sodium, which is quite dangerous for your kidney health. Other than sodium, there are other ingredients in processed foods that contain much higher amounts than your body should be consuming. These ingredients are potassium and phosphorus, which are good in small amounts, but too much can be damaging. Kidneys usually filter through potassium levels, but too much can be very stressful on the organ. Make sure to limit the frequency of processed foods you’re eating.
Try To Avoid Processed Foods
Stay Away From Soda
Unlike some fruit drinks, soda provides absolutely no nutrients to your body other than sugar. Did you know that in a 12-ounce soda, there is just as much sugar as you’d consume by eating three-and-a-half donuts? Research has proven that drinking two or more sodas per day will double your risk of getting kidney disease. Sugar isn’t the only bad guy here, though. Due to the high amount of phosphoric acid in soda, this also increases your risk for kidney problems.
Stay Away From Soda
Get Enough Sleep
Researchers from the University of Chicago proved that poor sleep habits lead to an increased risk of kidney disease. People who slept for six-and-a-half hours per day showed a 19 percent increase in their chances of kidney failure from those who got a full-night’s sleep. When you stay up too late, your kidneys also stay up late. Over time, lack of sleep can exaust your kidneys and lead to failure.
Get Enough Sleep
Don’t Stop A Prescription Early
We know it’s tempting to quit your prescription early if you’re starting to feel better, but it’s actually a horrible idea. Stopping a prescription before your illness is completely cured is bad for your kidneys. Specifically, taking medications to help blood pressure or pain can severely damage your kidneys if used sporadically instead of regularly. Your kidneys love routine and changing your medication routine every day will confuse your body.
Don’t Stop A Prescription Early
Do Your Homework On Supplements
It is completely normal to take daily supplements of vitamins, but many people fail to realize how high some of the dosages are. Taking too much of any vitamin is harmful, specifically to your kidneys. The supplements that are most dangerous for your kidneys when taken too much are cranberry, willow bark, wormwood oil, licorice, geranium, and vitamin C. Too much vitamin C and cranberry can drastically increase your risk for kidney stones. Even supplements such as turmeric, which is all-natural, can be harmful when combined with some medicine.
Do Your Homework On Supplements
Keep Your Exercise Routine In-Tact
Exercising isn’t just for people who want to improve their physical health, but also their internal health. According to the National Kidney Foundation, regular exercise lowers blood pressure, improves sleep habits, and enhances muscle function. All of these things come together to reduce risks for kidney disease. It doesn’t need to be something like training for a marathon; 150 minutes of light exercise such as walking or biking per week is all you need.
Keep Your Exercise Routine In Tact
Exercise In Moderation
While exercise is healthy, you need to be careful not to work yourself too hard. There is, surprisingly, a real risk of working yourself to death. When you workout too harshly, your body can’t handle it. When you injure several muscles at a time, enzymes that are harmful to your kidneys get released. 40 percent of the time, this results in kidney failure. This is called Rhabdomyolysis, and though it’s rare, it’s very dangerous. Most cases of Rhabdo occur during someone’s first exercise class, where they don’t know their body’s limits. You need to build up your muscles slowly, not go all out on day one.
Exercise In Moderation
Go Easy On Energy Drinks
Scientists are demanding that the FDA start to regulate the ingredients in their energy drinks, though no changes have been made yet. In a study done by Frontiers in Public Health kidney disease has been closely linked to energy drink consumption, especially in young kids. Too much caffeine can increase blood pressure and stress levels, which can lead to kidney disease. Another risk is the levels of amino acid taurine in energy drinks, which is extremely dangerous to people who already have kidney disorders.
Go Easy On Energy Drinks
Are You Getting Enough Water Each Day?
The kidney’s main job is to filter water out of the body, so keeping hydrated is a big must. According to the National Hydration Council, kidney stones most often result from chronic dehydration. This is because when you are lacking water, your urine has a much higher concentration of minerals, which can crystalize inside of your kidneys and create stones. There is no specific rule for how much water you should drink, but an estimate of nine cups for women and 13 for men is about average. It is all based on how thirsty you feel.
Are You Getting Enough Water Each Day?
Watch Your Red Meat Intakes
Eating red meat on occasion is not unhealthy, but eating too much of it is harmful to your kidneys over time. It has been confirmed by the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology that red meat can be toxic for your kidneys if consumed too often. On the other hand, plant-based proteins actually repair kidney injury. Replacing one serving of red meat per week with a plant-based protein will actually lower your risk of kidney disease by 62 percent.
Watch Your Red Meat Intake
Get Those Legs Moving
If you have a desk job that doesn’t require much moving, you may want to be more aware of how often you’re standing up during the day. In a 2018 research study, it was discovered that just one extra hour of physical activity per day can significantly lower your risks of kidney failure. It isn’t certain why sitting down increases chances for kidney disease, but some researchers believe it has something to do with blood glucose and cholesterol levels. So, the more you stand up, the healthier your kidneys will be.
Get Those Legs Moving
Reduce Butter Habits
Recently, people have been advocating for the replacement of butter with margarine. For the sake of your kidneys, this isn’t necessarily a good idea, as margarine contains different, but still harmful, things in it. The fats that are found in both butter and margarine raise your cholesterol, which is harmful to your kidneys. Enjoying butter in small amounts is not harmful, but you definitely shouldn’t eat it every day.
Reduce Butter Habits
Don’t Overeat
Especially during the holiday season, people tend to forget about the average amount of food that should be eaten in a meal. Overeating can put a serious strain on your kidneys, as the more you eat, the more food your kidneys have to sort through. The most lethal overeating combination is consuming too much protein, carbs, and fat together. As most holiday dinners include all three of these, it’s important to carefully watch what you’re putting into your body.
Don’t Overeat
Try To Lower Stress Levels
Experiencing high levels of stress regularly can easily lead to kidney disease. It’s been proven by researches that stress is harmful to your kidneys, but they have yet to figure out exactly why that is. Some think that stress raises blood pressure, which can scar your kidneys over a period of time. Increased stress levels lead to declining eating and sleeping, which can also be a cause for distressed kidneys. Try to tackle your stress before it starts to take over your physical health.
Try To Lower Stress Levels
Use A Sugar Substitute
Just like most things, in small amounts sugar is not so harmful to your kidneys. The real health concern comes into play when your blood sugar reaches high levels. High blood sugar and diabetes force your kidneys to filter too much blood, which can cause your kidneys to develop diseases. Research done at the University of Montreal discovered a strong tie between diabetes and kidney disease; diabetes can cause kidney disease, and kidney disease can cause diabetes. To prevent your chances of getting either one of these diseases, limit your sugar and check your glucose often.
Use A Sugar Substitute
Artificial Sweeteners Also Aren’t So Good
Though having Splenda instead of real sugar may lower the calorie count, these artificial sweeteners are doing more harm than good for your body. In 2009, a study discovered that drinking diet soda instead of regular actually increases your risk of kidney disease by up to thirty percent. Research shows that two or less artificially-sweetened treats per day won’t do much harm to your kidneys, but more-detailed research still needs to be done on this. Try to use honey or Stevia instead of Splenda next time.
Artificial Sweeteners Also Aren’t So Good
Moderate Drinking
Drinking alcohol causes your kidneys to essentially have to work overtime in order to filter out the harmful things you’re ingesting, so overdrinking can be very harmful. Overdrinking is classified as having more than four alcoholic drinks every day. At the same time, other research has shown that having one glass of something each day (seven drinks per week) could actually lower your kidney disease risk by thirty percent. So, if you’re going to drink, do it in moderation.
Moderate Drinking
Steer Clear Of Body Enhancements
Though steroids and body enhancement drugs may improve muscle strength, it is destroying your kidneys at the same time. Research has discovered that 90 percent of bodybuilders have developed scarring from using muscle enhancement medications. Over some time after they stopped using, their kidneys eventually regained their health. Steroids can also raise your cholesterol, lower protein levels in your blood, and cause swelling in your body; all of these things are harmful to your kidneys.
Steer Clear Of Body Enhancements
Monitor Your Heartburn Medication
Some heartburn medications are perfectly okay to take every day, but proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are not. Research suggests that these drugs, which suppress the acid in your stomach, harm your kidneys. Taking PPIs more often than occasionally will raise your risk of kidney disease by twenty-six percent. Different types of heartburn medicine, like H2 Blockers, don’t produce these harmful side effects. If you are someone who takes heartburn medication every daily, consider switching to an H2 Blocker.
Monitor Your Heartburn Medication
Check Up On Your Blood Pressure Levels
Blood pressure is nicknamed “the silent killer” for a valid reason- it shows no symptoms when something isn’t right. The American Heart Association says that everyone should get their blood pressure checked at least every two years; any longer can put you at risk for kidney disease, as high blood pressure is extremely harmful to the blood vessels inside of your kidneys. If your blood vessels fail, your kidneys will also fail at regulating your blood pressure. Once this happens, your blood pressure can rise very quickly, which is not safe.
Check Up On Your Blood Pressure Levels
You Don’t Need So Much Coffee
Drinking a cup of coffee each day is not harmful, but having several cups each day is. Caffeine drastically increases blood pressure levels quickly, which can hurt your kidneys when taken in too high of quantities. Research has not confirmed how much coffee is too much coffee, but be aware of these effects. Research done at the National Kidney Foundation recommends sticking to less than four cups of coffee per day; on top of this, make sure to be careful of coffee additives, like cream or flavored syrup, as these are high in sugars and fats.
You Don’t Need So Much Coffee
Don’t Eat Too Much Shellfish
While sometimes seafood has some major health benefits, eating too much shellfish will start to hurt your kidneys over some time. Researched from the 2014 Journal of the American Society of Nephrology found that shellfish contains a harmful, if not toxic, chemical called domoic acid. This is also called “Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning”, and it can severely injure your kidneys. Even in low quantities, this acid can still harm your kidneys. Eating a lot of seafood doesn’t have as many benefits as people think, and it does much more harm than people realize.
Don’t Eat Too Much Shellfish
Medical Photos Can Be Harmful
While most people don’t generally get MRIs very often, they can still be quite harmful to your kidneys. The dye they use to contrast colors in your body can cause problems for you. The side effect of these dyes is a new disease called Contrast Induced Nephropathy (CIN). This disease causes kidneys to completely fail for up to three days. Luckily CIN is reversible, but it is still dangerous.
Medical Photos Can Be Harmful
Stick To Only The Good Kinds Of Fat
To remain healthy, our bodies need healthy fats. These are monosaturated and polyunsaturated fats. The bad fats that people are worried about are trans fats, which are often found in processed foods like refrigerated dough and creamers. A study done for the British Medical Journal showed that saturated fat isn’t bad for your heart, but trans fat increases your risk of diseases by twenty-one percent.
Stick To Only The Good Kinds Of Fat
One Drink Per Day Can Be Healthy
In 2001, research in the Postgraduate Medical Journal analyzed over 100 studies and concluded that drinking in moderation reinforces heart health. One drink per day can help lower your risk of heart disease, but too much drinking can drastically increase your risk. It’s a fine line. One drink is about 12 ounces of beer or five ounces of wine.
One Drink Per Day Can Be Healthy
Sleep For Seven Or More Hours
In 2014, researchers published on the habits of people they’d been studying for over 10 years. Their studies showed that of all of the habits these people showed, it was proven that getting at least seven hours of sleep per night will significantly increase the odds of having a healthy and disease-free heart. Deep sleep ignites chemicals that lower your heart rate and blood pressure, so not getting enough rest can increase your risk of heart problems by fifty-eight percent.
Sleep For Seven Or More Hours
Keep Your Stress In Check
When you’re experiencing high levels of stress, your breaths get shorter, your muscles get tenser, and your heart rate gets faster. All of these things are results of stress, but they can have serious implications on your heart health. Chronic stress will eat away at your heart over time, even if in general you have no prior risk of heart problems. There is a difference between feeling a normal level of stress or anxiety and having chronic stress problems; chronic stress has intense effects on your heart health. Participating in stress-relieving activities for ten to fifteen minutes per day can help tremendously.
Keep Your Stress In Check
Eat More Fruits And Veggies
It isn’t a matter of which fruits and vegetables are good for your heart; it’s more of a question of which fruits and vegetables you’re going to eat in order to support your heart health. Studies show that five servings, which is equivalent to about 2.5 cups, of fruits and veggies each day can lower your risk of getting heart disease. 10 servings can decrease your risk for disease by twenty-eight percent and your risk for premature death by thirty-one percent.
Eat More Fruits And Veggies
Cut Back On The TV Binging
After 20 years of studying 70,000 women, researchers released data in 2015. At the beginning of the study, nearly every woman suffered from diabetes or heart disease, and by the end of the study, many of them cut their risk of a heart attack by ninety-two percent! One habit that they all had in common was the fact that they limited their TV watching to seven hours weekly. When you spend too much time watching TV, you’re spending less time exercising; it’s really that simple. Watching TV for four hours each day has been proven to be worse for you than sitting at a desk job all day.
Cut Back On TV Binging
Exercise For Fifteen Minutes Each Day
It’s not a secret that exercise is great for your body. It can strengthen your heart, lower your blood pressure, and reduce your stress levels. Authors of The American Journal of Medicine analyzed exercise intensity needs and found that just 15 minutes of daily exercise can drastically improve your lifespan. Just 15 minutes of walking or doing some sort of physical activity can lower your risk of heart attack and stroke.
Exercise For Fifteen Minutes Each Day
Being Social Can Help Your Heart
Research actually proves that having a healthy and fulfilling social life and a group of friends can decrease the risk of heart disease. Boston Scientific researchers strongly believe that having positive social interactions can reduce stress and depression, both of which can be risks for heart disease. Next time you want to skip out on plans with friends, you may want to reconsider.
Being Social Can Help Your Heart
Drink Plenty Of Water
Not drinking enough water leads to dehydration, and dehydration leads to an unhealthy heart. Drinking five glasses of water each day will help to improve heart health drastically. Drinking less than two glasses of water each day will weaken your heart over time and can lead to serious heart diseases. The thicker your blood is, the harder it has to work to pump through your body, and the more tired it will get. Drinking more water will lower your blood viscosity and reduce strain on your heart muscles.
Drink Plenty Of Water
Stand Up Frequently
Sitting at your desk all day not only puts a strain on your eyes and back but on your heart as well. In 2015, 41 studies showed that sitting all day increases your risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer greatly. In a study conducted in 2019, research showed that standing for an extra hour each day decreases your risk of heart disease by twenty-six percent. There are tricks you can use to still get your work done but also watch out for your health: get a standing desk, take brief walks throughout the day (to the bathroom and back, for a glass of water, etc.), and park your car farther away so you need to walk a bit more.
Stand Up Frequently
Measure Blood Pressure
Proven by scientific studies, high blood pressure is the leading cause of heart disease. High blood pressure leads to hypertensive heart disease, which means that your heart is thickened and your arteries are narrowed. The American Heart Association strongly advocates that high blood pressure should be at the top of your healthcare priorities list. Even if you don’t currently have high blood pressure, you should always be working to avoid it, because even though you don’t have it now, you can always get it.
Measure Blood Pressure
Always Check Up On Yourself
Just because you haven’t had health problems in the past, it doesn’t mean you don’t have to worry about getting health problems in the future. If you have neglected to monitor blood pressure, cholesterol, or blood sugar for well over a year, it’s been too long. It is recommended to check your blood pressure once per year, blood glucose once every three years, and cholesterol every four to six years. You should never assume that your body is not at risk for these harmful diseases; just because you appear to be healthy, it does not mean you don’t need to monitor your health risks.
Always Check Up On Yourself
Know What Your BMI Should Be
Though weight is often seen as being a superficial conversation, for doctors it is less about physical appearances and more focused on actual body and heart health. A study done in 2018 in JAMA Cardiology showed that having a high Body Mass Index (BMI) can increase your risk of heart disease. Ask your doctor what your BMI should be, and try to maintain a healthy lifestyle in that range. Try not to base your BMI off of online charts, as there are many more factors that really go into this than just height and weight.
Know What Your BMI Should Be
Brush Your Teeth Every Day
Did you know that gum disease carries many of the same health risks as heart disease? Harvard Health says that bacteria found in your gums may travel to blood vessels, which will inflame your arteries and create blood clots that increase the risks of a stroke. Though in 2012 the American Heart Association stated that it’s not always the case that gum disease will harm your heart, you’ll still want to brush and floss your teeth twice per day.
Brush Your Teeth Every Day
E-Cigarettes Are Extremely Harmful
You may think that smoking from an e-cigarette instead of an actual one is safer, but according to a research author for BMJ, “no safe level of smoking exists for cardiovascular disease”. A study conducted in 2017 showed that smoking even just one cigarette per day can lead to heart disease and stroke in the future. E-cigarettes in no way lower these odds, but rather adding e-cigarettes into your routine actually increases them. Many states have started banning e-cigarettes in 2019 after discovering many illnesses that were contracted from vaping. E-cigarettes actually increase your risk of having a heart attack and developing coronary artery disease, as well as facing emotional distress.
E Cigarettes Are Extremely Harmful
Stay Away From Secondhand Smoke
Standing next to people who are smoking and inhaling their secondhand smoke can drastically impact your heart health. According to a study from Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects inhaling secondhand smoke still increases your risk of heart disease by up to thirty percent. Try to limit your interaction with smoke in general, whether it’s smoking yourself or being next to someone who is smoking. Secondhand smoke can cause you to breathe in over 7,000 chemicals, 70 of which can cause cancer.
Stay Away From Secondhand Smoke
Vitamins and Minerals
Eating a healthy diet filled with whole foods and plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits is important for your overall health as well as your kidney function. A lot of vitamin and mineral deficiencies like Vitamin B6, C, and D, can increase the risk of kidney stones or even kidney failure. For example, vitamin B6 and magnesium are very important in order to prevent the risk of kidney stones.
Vitamins And Minerals
Avocado
We always hear about how nutritious and healthy avocados are, and how healthy they are for the heart with good fats, fiber, and antioxidants. Well, even though they usually are a healthy addition to someone’s diet, people with kidney disease might need to steer clear of them. The reason for that is that avocados are a very rich source of potassium. One cup (150 grams) of avocado has a whopping 727 mg of potassium, which is double the amount of potassium than a medium banana provides. Because of this, avocados, and guacamole as well, should be avoided if someone has been warned to watch their potassium intake.
Avocado
Canned Foods
Canned foods like soups, vegetables, and beans are typically bought because they’re cheap and convenient. Well, most canned foods have really high amounts of sodium since salt is added to increase its shelf life. Because of this, it’s often recommended to people with kidney disease that they avoid or limit their consumption. Choosing lower-sodium foods or those labeled “no salt added” is normally the best. Also, draining and rinsing canned foods like canned beans and tuna can decrease the sodium content by 33-80%, depending on the product.
Canned Food
Whole-Wheat Bread
Choosing the right bread can confuse people with kidney disease. A lot of times, whole wheat bread is usually recommended over refined, white flour bread. While whole wheat bread is a more nutritious choice thanks to its higher fiber content, white bread is normally recommended for people with kidney disease. This is due to the fact that whole wheat bread contains a lot of phosphorus and potassium content. The more bran and whole grains in the bread, the higher those contents are. Aside from this, it should be known that most bread, whether whole wheat or not, contain high amounts of sodium.
Whole Wheat Bread
Brown Rice
Just like whole-wheat bread, brown rice is a whole grain that has a higher potassium and phosphorus content than white rice. Just one cup of cooked brown rice contains 150 mg of phosphorus and 154 mg of potassium, while one cup of cooked white rice has only 69 mg of phosphorus and 54 mg of potassium. Some good substitutes for rice are bulgur, buckwheat, pearled barley, and couscous since they are nutritious and have less phosphorus.
Brown Rice
Banana
It seems like everyone knows that bananas have high levels of potassium. While they’re naturally low in sodium, one medium banana has 422 mg of potassium. It could be difficult to keep your daily potassium intake under 2,000 mg if you eat a banana every day. Unfortunately, a lot of other tropical fruits have high potassium contents as well. Even so, pineapples contain a lot less potassium than other tropical fruits and can be a more suitable alternative.
Banana
Dairy
Dairy products are rich in all kinds of vitamins and nutrients, but they’re also a source of phosphorus and potassium as well as a good source of protein. However, consuming too much dairy foods, especially with other phosphorus-rich foods, can be detrimental to bone health in people with kidney disease. This might come as a surprise since milk and dairy can often be recommended for strong bones and muscle health. However, when kidneys are damaged and not working properly, too much phosphorus consumption can cause a buildup of phosphorus in the blood. This can make your bones thin and weak over time as well as increase the risk of bone breakage or fracture. Dairy alternatives like unenriched rice milk and almond milk are much lower in potassium, phosphorus, and protein, making them good substitutes.
Dairy
Strep Throat
When you have this particular infection, your body produces proteins called antibodies that are fighting it. Extra ones can start settling in the filtering parts of your kidneys, causing them to get inflamed. It normally doesn’t last long, but the kidney damage can be permanent for some people.
Strep Throat
Take Care With Antibiotics
Bacteria fighting drugs, known as antibiotics, can damage your kidneys if you use them too often. It can happen even if you’re perfectly healthy, while it’s more serious if your kidneys already don’t work well. Some types of antibiotics, like penicillin, sulfonamides, and cephalosporins, are most likely to cause problems.
Take Care With Antibiotics
Get Screened
It’s very important to know your risk for kidney disease. It’s a lot more likely if you or close relatives have heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, or a family history of kidney failure. Your doctor might suggest specific kidney tests as part of your regular checkup if this is the case. The sooner you catch it, it’s easier to treat, and sometimes even cure.
Get Screened
Oranges and Orange Juice
We all know oranges and orange juice are famous for their vitamin C contents, but they also happen to have high amounts of potassium. One big orange had 333 mg of potassium. Also, there is 473 mg of potassium in one cup of orange juice. Given their high potassium content, oranges and orange juice most likely should be avoided by people with kidney disease. Some good substitutes are apples, grapes, and cranberries, as well as their juices since they have lower potassium contents.
Oranges And Orange Juice
Pickles, Olives, and Relish
Cured or pickled foods like pickles, olives, and relish typically have really high amounts of salt since it’s necessary for the curing or pickling process. In fact, one pickle can contain over 300 mg of sodium. Five green pickled olives have about 195 mg of sodium. A lot of grocery stores have reduced-sodium options for pickles, olives, and relish. However, keep in mind that even reduced-sodium options can still have high amounts of sodium.
Pickles, Olives And Relish
Apricots
Apricots have high amounts of vitamin C, vitamin A, and fiber. They’re also high in potassium. Just one cup of fresh apricots has 427 mg of potassium. Not to mention that the potassium content is even concentrated in dried apricots. One cup of dried apricots has more than 1,500 mg of potassium. Meaning that one cup of dried apricots has 75% of the 2,000 mg low-potassium restriction. It’s best for people with kidney disease to avoid apricots, mainly dried apricots.
Apricots
Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes
Potatoes and sweet potatoes both have high potassium levels. One medium-sized baked potato contains 610 mg of potassium, whereas one average-sized baked sweet potato has 541 mg of potassium. Thankfully, some high-potassium foods like potatoes and sweet potatoes can be soaked or leached to reduce their potassium contents. Cutting potatoes into small, thin pieces and boiling them for a minimum of 10 minutes can reduce the potassium content by around 50%. In addition, potatoes that are soaked in a large pot of water for at least 4 hours before cooking are proven to have an even lower potassium content than those not soaked before cooking.
Potatoes And Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes
Another high-potassium fruit is tomatoes. They can be served raw or stewed and are usually used to make sauces. One cup of tomato sauce can have more than 900 mg of potassium. Finding an alternative that has lower potassium amounts depends mainly on taste preference. However, switching tomato sauce for a roasted red pepper sauce can be just as delicious and with less potassium.
Tomatoes
Pre-Made Meals
Processed foods can have extremely high levels of sodium. Packaged, instant and pre-made meals are usually the most processed, therefore, they contain the highest amounts of sodium. Things like frozen pizza, microwaveable meals, and instant noodles can be the worst of the bunch. Keeping sodium intake lower than 2,000 mg a day can be a challenge if you’re eating highly processed foods on a regular basis.
Pre Made Meals
Swiss Chard, Spinach and Beet Greens
Green leafy vegetables like swiss chard, spinach, and beet greens all contain high amounts of various nutrients and minerals, including potassium. When served raw, they can have between 140-290 mg of potassium per cup. Despite the fact that leafy vegetables tend to shrink when cooked, the potassium content stays the same.
Swiss Chard, Spinach And Beet Greens
Dates, Raisins, and Prunes
Some common dried fruits are dates, raisins, and prunes. When fruits are dried, all their nutrients become concentrated. This, of course, includes potassium. One cup of prunes has 1,274 mg of potassium, which is almost five times the amount of potassium in one cup of plums.
Dates, Raisins, And Prunes
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
A large number of processed foods contain genetically modified organisms, aka GMOs. Due to the lack of studies, the long-term health effects of GMO crops on humans are unknown. However, studies on animals show that serious health effects are related to GMOs. This includes changes in organs like the kidneys. While it’s almost impossible to avoid all these foods, it’s advised that people eat a wide variety of fresh, healthy foods, with processed foods in moderation.
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
Peanuts
Peanuts have oxalates which are a type of mineral found in kidney stones. In fact, calcium oxalate kidney stones are the main type of kidney stones according to the National Kidney Foundation. If you’ve had that kind of kidney stone in the past, you should limit your intake of food that contains oxalates in order to reduce your risk of developing another stone.
Peanuts