In today's top 5 I'll show you 5 nutrient-dense superfoods that will change your renal diet
for the better!
To improve your kidney health, a good nutritional status is a must.
The 5 foods I have here will give you the most nutrition bang per bite and will for
sure make it easier to lower your creatinine levels naturally.
Let's start with our number 5...
Hello, this is Katherine, welcome to 00Kidney with... a new grocery haul video!
You seem to really like this format and today I wanted to show you some really great foods
to lower your creatinine levels naturally.
But today's video is going to be a little different than usual, I'm going to focus on
foods you DIDN'T KNOW you could actually eat to protect your kidney health!
Yes, these are some superfoods that a lot of people with kidney disease are convinced
they cannot eat... and maybe their doctor even told them not to eat these foods!
But, as I'll show you, they are actually not just safe but even healthy for your kidneys!
And I think this is really important, because your kidneys need proper nutrition to improve
their function!
Yes, you heard it right, you can actually improve your kidney function if you are able
to give your kidneys all the nutrients they need!
It's not easy, especially for people in the advanced stages.
Actually, for kidney patients developing and following the right kidney diet can be challenging.
It requires a lot of strength and discipline and I know it's not always easy.
But if you are here, if you are trying to learn new things, it means in my opinion that
you are already on the right path to fight this disease.
And this means knowing what are the right food for your very own situation and for your
stage.
Having a good nutritional status is really important for the health of your kidneys and
I think that the foods I'll show you today can help you!
Let's start with our number 5!
This is a superfood beneficial for maintaining healthy kidneys and lowering blood sugar levels.
it is...
Wait, what?
How is this possible?
bananas have too much potassium to be healthy for the kidneys, right ?
Well, it depends!
There are two factors that will tell you if bananas are healthy or unhealthy for you!
The first one is their ripeness!
A lot of people don't know this, but unripe bananas can be actually really healthy!
Why?
Because of the starches they contain.
Green bananas are rich in starches.
Now, as the bananas ripens, the starches turn into sugars and the banana turns to yellow.
So, the more ripen, the more sugars and the less starches.
Now, if we look at a banana like this one, which is still very unripe, starch makes up
to 70% of the weight of the banana.
Starch is usually classified as dietary fiber, meaning that it will not be digested by the
intestine.
Why am I so interested in starches?
Because, according to recent studies, they are really beneficial for maintaining healthy
kidneys.
These studies reveal that just 15-30 grams of resistant starch per day may improve insulin
sensitivity by up to 50% in just four weeks.
Improved insulin sensitivity means less damage done by diabetes to the kidneys.
Now, this banana weights about 120g, meaning that there's about 80-90 grams of starch in
it.
You would just need to eat 2 or 3 of these per week to get all these benefits.
Bananas are rich in pectin, a type of fiber that gives the flesh its spongy structural
form.
Both pectin and resistant starch may moderate blood sugar levels after meals and reduce
appetite by slowing the emptying of your stomach.
Now, bananas are famous for one thing: potassium.
What a lot of people don't know, is that potassium is really really healthy for your kidneys,
if they are not damaged.
So you should avoid potassium, and bananas, if you're in stage 4 or 5 or if your doctor
gave you a potassium allowance.
But you should definitely eat bananas if you're in stage 2 or 3 or if you have healthy kidneys.
Potassium is essential for blood pressure control and healthy kidney function.
Recent studies found out that those who eat bananas 4-6 times a week are almost 50% less
likely to develop kidney disease than those who don't eat this fruit.
So, to recap: eat bananas several times a week to improve your kidney health if you
are in stage 3 or lower or even if you have healthy kidneys and just want to keep it that
way.
Eat unripe bananas if you're diabetic and want to improve your insulin sensitivity.
But avoid bananas and other foods rich in potassium if you're in stage 4 or 5 or if
your doctor gave you a potassium allowance.
So, how many of you were actually convinced they should avoid bananas even if it wasn't
true?
Let me know in comment section if you have discovered something new in this video, can't
wait to hear from you!
But let's move on with our top 5!
And if bananas are unusual for a kidney patient, the next superfood is even less known!
Here's our number 4!
This is a nutrient dense, heart healthy superfood that even patients in the last stages of kidney
disease can add to their diet!
Let's see what's inside!
This cannot be right.
Beans can be really healthy, but there's just too much phosphorus and sodium and potassium
to even consider them for a renal diet.
OK, wait, there's something more here... ah, green beans!
Here's a great way for kidney patients to get some fiber and antioxidant from a very
healthy legume!
And the best part is that, while the beans I just throw away contained almost 2000mg
of potassium per cup, which is three times more than bananas, green beans have just 209mg
of potassium per cup, making them an ideal part of a renal diet.
Yes, these beans have less potassium than cauliflowers or red bell peppers.
Now, potassium is not everything in a renal diet.
This is why legumes like this are so healthy for your kidneys.
Green beans are a nutrient dense food.
There's a lot of vital nutrients in beans, including iron, folate, fiber and magnesium.
They are also rich in polyphenols, antioxidants useful to fight the effects of free radicals
There are even studies showing that eating more of these legumes is a way to improve
your heart health.
But, most of all, they're rich in carbs that are healthy for your kidneys.
Because having too much sugar from foods in the diet is really bad for the health of your
kidneys.
Sugar and carbs can cause insulin levels to rise, and that's the number one cause of kidney
disease.
But the carbs in green beans are different: they lower blood sugar levels, instead of
increasing it, if eaten in combination with other carbs.
This is why they are healthy for people with kidney disease.
So, even if legumes are hardly recommended for people suffering from kidney disease,
a side of green beans could be a really great choice
Time for our number 3!
Let's see what's inside!
Talking about unusual foods for a kidney diet!
Yet, potatoes are a staple food in many households for more than a reason!
They are gluten free, incredibly filling and versatile for cooking, and also contain a
lot of useful vitamins and minerals.
Especially if eaten with the skin, they are very rich in fiber.
Unfortunately, most people eat potatoes in the form of greasy French fries or potato
chips, and even baked potatoes are typically loaded down with fats such as butter, sour
cream, melted cheese and bacon bits.
Now, don't do that if you care about the health of your kidneys and of your heart.
But don't avoid eating potatoes either.
Cooked in a healthy way, potatoes are a high fiber food that offers significant protection
against cardiovascular disease and cancer.
They are also a very good source of vitamin C, vitamin B6 and niacin.
There are also antioxidants in them, useful to fight free radicals.
Yes, potatoes are definitely an healthy food.
Ok, for most people with kidney disease the problem with potatoes is their content of
potassium Now, the very interesting part is that there's
a way even for people in the advanced stages of kidney disease to eat them!
It's called potassium leeching!
This way of cooking potatoes will reduce the amount of potassium of one cup of potatoes
from about 900mg to about just 200mg of potassium.
Here's how to do it.
Peel the vegetable and discard the skin.
Place it in cold water.
Slice and make sure the pieces are no more than 1/8 of inch thick
Rinse the pieces in warm water Now, soak the pieces in a large amount of
warm water.
Use ten times the amount of water compared to the amount of vegetables.
Ideally, pieces should be left soaking for at least two hours or more.
Rinse again with warm water.
Cook the vegetables with five times the amount of water to the amount of vegetables.
Additionally, you can remove the potatoes from the water halfway during cooking, rinse
them again and finish cooking after changing the water.
So, to recap, eat potatoes with the skin if you're in stage 3 or lower.. and you don't
need to limit potassium intake.
But leach them to remove potassium if you still want to eat them and you need to keep
potassium under control.
Let's move on with our top 5!
Here's our number 2!
Red grapes are definitely one of the best things about fall!
Not only are red grapes delicious, they also deliver a ton of nutrition in a small package.
Red grapes contain several antioxidants that give them their reddish color.
Flavonoids and Vitamin C in red grapes help protect against heart disease by preventing
oxidation and reducing the formation of blood clots.
One of the flavonoids of red grapes is called Resveratrol and it's known to help relax muscle
cells in the blood vessels to increase blood flow.
This is a great news for people suffering from high blood pressure and CKD!
Now, when you are buying grapes, pay attention to the color of the skin.
Grapes with red or purple skin have an higher anthocyanin content.
These are very powerful antioxidants that will really improve your nutritional status.
Red grapes are kidney friendly and can be consumed in any stage of kidney disease.
Half cup of red grapes or 75 grams contain just 1.5 mg of sodium and 144mg of potassium.
Now a tip for people in dialysis or with a fluid restriction.
Freezing red grapes and eating them as a snack could be a great way to quench the thirst.
Try it!
So, our superfoods for today were Bananas, incredibly healthy and a great help against
diabetic kidney disease Green beans, a nutrient dense, heart healthy
superfood, the best legume for patients even in the last stages of kidney disease!
Potatoes, something a lot of people don't know they can eat even if they have a potassium
restriction!
Healthy and tasty!
And red grapes, packed with antioxidants, great as a snack when frozen
Ok, can't wait to show you our number 1!
Yes, kale is maybe the healthiest food on the planet.
A diet rich in kale can lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, decreasing the risk
for heart disease and kidney disease.
Kale is also one of the best sources of vitamin K.
Eating more kale is a great way to dramatically increase the total nutrient content of your
diet.
Want to know more about superfoods to add to your renal diet?
Watch this video now!
This is all for today, thank you for watching.