High Protein Diet-Induced Chronic Kidney Disease

Some of us are forever trying to lose weight. Theoretically, you should consume fewer calories than you spend. But that easier said than done and people often try to lose weight by dieting. All sorts of diets exist, but most of them will not work in the long term.

In the last few years, people often decide to adopt a high-protein diet. Eating protein helps a person feel full, which can lead to them eating fewer calories overall. High-protein diets typically include large quantities of protein and only a small amount of carbohydrate. High-protein diets are thus the same as low-carbohydrate diets (or Lo-Carb Diets).

Most people can follow a high-protein diet by eating mostly meat, fish, and dairy products. This diet will help you to reduce your weight in the short term, but a life without carbohydrates (bread, pasta, potatoes, etc) isn't the most healthy option.

In fact, a high protein diet is a bit of a double-edged sword. Yes, you can lose weight with it, but it can also have some detrimental effects on your kidneys.

Scientific evidence suggests that kidneys might be damaged in individuals with—and perhaps without—impaired kidney function. High dietary protein intake can cause intraglomerular hypertension, which may result in kidney hyperfiltration, glomerular injury, and proteinuria. It is possible that long-term high protein intake may lead to de novo Chronic Kidney Disease[1].

It is prudent, so concludes another study, to avoid recommending high-protein intake for weight loss in obese or diabetic patients or those with prior cardiovascular events or a solitary kidney if kidney health cannot be adequately protected[2].

Red and processed meat are being adversely associated with the risk of Chronic Kidney Disease risk, while nuts, low-fat dairy products, and legumes being protective against the development of Chronic Kidney Disease[3]. That means that following the so-called Mediterranean Diet is possibly the only healthy option if you want to lose weight, while at the same time protecting your kidneys.

We propose to call this Chronic Kidney Disease of non-Traditional causes (CKDnT): High Protein Diet-Induced Chronic Kidney Disease.

[1] Ko et al: The Effects of High-Protein Diets on Kidney Health and Longevity in Journal of the American Society of Nephrology – 2020. See here.
[2] Kalantar-Zadeh: High-protein diet is bad for kidney health: unleashing the taboo in Nephrology, Dialysis, and Transplantation – 2020. See here.
[3] Haring et al: Dietary Protein Sources and Risk for Incident Chronic Kidney Disease: Results From the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study in Journal of Renal Nutrition – 2017. See here.