Foods That Shrink Kidney Cysts

… Continued …

1. Alcohol beverages are quite high in calories. Heavy drinking can make it more difficult to stay at your healthy weight.
2. Heavy drinking is also often to blame for the raised blood pressure. And again, high blood pressure is a serious threat for your kidney health – especially if you have complex kidney cysts with polycystic kidney disease.
3. Some prescription medications can interact with alcohol, too.
4. It is bad for your liver health.
5. Even research suggests that abusing alcohol may also contribute to cause increased risk of some cancers.

Avoid tobacco smoke!

Tobacco smoke, including secondhand smoke (environmental tobacco smoke that you get from a burning cigarette or/and smoke exhaled by a smoker), is bad for everyone. It is particularly more dangerous if you have any type of kidney disorder.

If you’re a smoker, quitting can help a lot to protect your kidneys. Smoking is also linked to many different health conditions. It can increase your risk of strokes, hypertension, heart disease, kidney failure, many types of cancers, and more.

Drink adequate water!

Lack of water in the body (dehydration) can cause some consequences. In fact, most of your total body’s weight is water. You cannot survive without water!

Dehydration is linked to a number of kidney problems, particularly such as kidney stones. It can make the kidneys work harder, too! Furthermore, there is also an opinion that lack of water may become a factor of kidney cyst growth – though this issue is not clearly yet, still debatable!

But overall, whether or not drinking adequate water can help shrink kidney cysts – it’s always important to keep hydrated, try to drink at least 2 liters of plain water every day! Hydration also does have an effect to support your kidney health and keep it strong!

What else?

The following are other things to remember for healthy diet with kidney cysts:

1. Any foods you eat should fit into your daily calorie budget. This is important to maintain your healthy weight.
2. Eat less sugar and fat! This is important to control your weight and lower the risk of type-2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. All of these benefits are also good for your kidney health.
3. Include more fiber, fruits, and vegetables!
4. It’s also worth a try to pay attention in your dietary potassium. Potassium is essential mineral and required by the body. But high-potassium diet may become counterproductive if you have kidney disorder. For most healthy individuals, the consumption of potassium about 3500-4500 mg a day is still considered normal. If you need to take a potassium restricted diet, you may need to eat no more than 2000 mg a day – or ask your dietitian for more advice!

This section is only intended for general information. If you do need to change your diet, consult first with your healthcare provider (doctor, nurse, or dietitian) – especially if you’re on dialysis or take medication that requires specific dietary instruction!