Happy New Year! We combed through multiple medical journals looking for the latest research on the Integrative approach to kidney health. We know your time is valuable so we curated and summarized these studies for you. Welcome to the January edition of InKidney Research and News.
3 years of lifestyle interventions improved exercise capacity and decreased the losses in neuromuscular and cardiorespiratory fitness in CKD patients
In this study, researchers randomized 161 patients with stage 3-4 CKD to either get usual care or usual care plus lifestyle “intervention” for 3 years.
The lifestyle intervention comprised of care from a multidisciplinary team, including a nephrologist, nurse practitioner, exercise physiologist, dietitian, diabetes educator, psychologist, and social worker.
The patients were coached for 8 weeks and then followed for 34 months with a home-based program.
The study did not look at the progression of CKD but it found that a 3-year lifestyle intervention doubled the percentage of CKD patients meeting physical activity guidelines, improved exercise capacity, and decreased the losses in neuromuscular and cardiorespiratory fitness.
It appears that the study mainly focused on exercise. So imagine the benefit of a comprehensive lifestyle modification plan that includes nutrition, exercise, stress management, sleep improvement, and attention to toxin exposure and gut-kidney connection. That’s what we focus on.
Read the study
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Curcumin powder did not improve markers of vascular dysfunction in PKD
This is essentially a negative study.
It demonstrated that Curcumin powder did not improve markers of vascular dysfunction in children and young adults with PKD. The study was conducted for only one year using a dose of 25 mg/kg per day of curcumin.
This is a classic supplement or nutrient study that is usually underpowered or conducted for short periods of time for a disease that takes years or even decades to evolve. Nevertheless, the study proved that short-term use of curcumin is not beneficial for vascular health for young patients with polycystic kidney disease.
Read the study
Low serum zinc levels were associated with infections in CKD patients
This did not really need research but it is now studied and it is official: Low zinc levels in patients with CKD lead to infection (..well among other things).
This retrospective study analyzed data from 299 CKD patients who had serum zinc levels checked to evaluate anemia. They used the level of 50 mcg/dl as the cutoff between low or “high” zinc values.
Low serum zinc values remained an independent risk factor for infection-related hospitalization. This was especially true for patients taking proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) medications.
Read about the effect of Zinc on kidney health in this blog.
Read the study
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