Can Intermittent Fasting Help Reverse Kidney Disease?

Intermittent fasting is considered to be a modern approach for people to lose weight in a healthy way and improve their overall well-being. 

A study conducted in 2021 stated that researchers tried to understand the effects of intermittent fasting on patients suffering from Type 2 diabetes and diabetic neuropathy.

The sole objective of this was to asses if intermittent fasting could reduce the level of albuminuria or albumin in the urine. 

Higher output of albumin can cause kidney issues or the onset of kidney diseases at an early age. 

Intermittent fasting can slow down Kidney Diseases. 

Several studies were conducted to understand how intermittent fasting can actually reduce or lower Kidney diseases.

People suffering from Kidney disease stated that by following the updated approach of fasting, they were able to lower the level of albuminuria and increase their glycemic control as well as their blood pressure. 

Following this trend of Intermittent fasting, they were also able to improve their insulin levels. 

Types of Intermittent Fasting 

There are multiple ways to fast but the most trending and well-known methods include :

• 16/8 method

  – The 16/8 method of fasting includes a person restricting their eating for 8 hours and fasting for the rest of the 16 hours. Most of the people following this process usually skip breakfast.

• Eat-stop-eat

  – This method includes a person to fast for 24 hours either once or twice in a week.

• The 5:2 diet

  – The 5:2 method includes a person to eat 500-600 calories either twice a week or for non-consecutive days,  and maintaining a normal diet for the rest of 5 days in a week. 

Studies and Researches

Several studies and researches were conducted which showed that fasting was able to slow down the rate of polycystic kidney diseases (PKD) in mice. However, the outcome of this in humans is restricted. 

There are certain limitations to this whole procedure of intermittent fasting as a treatment.

Since fasting did not have any long-term effect on maintaining the controlling levels of albuminuria in a person’s body, this means a person needs to continue this for a long time in order to control their health. 

Effects of intermittent fasting on the body:

Intermittent fasting is not the only solution. A person needs to maintain their diabetes level as well since fasting complements the ongoing treatments.

Research conducted that intermittent fasting can lower albuminuria levels and increase glycemic control, help to maintain blood pressure as well as insulin level too along with intensive diabetic care. 

Conclusion

Intermittent fasting helps to reduce body weight and maintain proper health. It has been proven to be beneficial for people suffering from type 2 diabetes. Numerous types of research have been conducted and to state, if intermittent fasting is good for people suffering from kidney disease is still under trial. However, it is suggested that people who want to change their diet should consult with their doctors once before changing the diet so that there’s zero complications.