‘Controlled fat diet’ could reverse kidney damage

Research suggests that eating a controlled diet that is high in fatOne of the three main food constituents (with carbohydrate and protein), and the main form in which energy is stored in the body. and low in carbohydrate may help to repair kidneyOne of two bean-shaped organs that are located on either side of the body, below the ribcage. The main role of the kidneys is to filter out waste products from the blood. damage.

The results of research carried out by the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York published in the journal PLoS ONE show that diabetic mice that were fed this controlled diet were able to reverse the damage caused to their kidneys by too much sugar in the bloodA fluid that transports oxygen and other substances through the body, made up of blood cells suspended in a liquid.. The study used mice with both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetesA disorder caused by insufficient or absent production of the hormone insulin by the pancreas, or because the tissues are resistant to the effects., and once kidney damage had developed, half of the mice were put on the diet for eight weeks. After eight weeks of testing the kidney damage was reversed.

Questions remain however with regards to how sustainable this type of diet might be for humans, particularly as the 87% fat content mimics the effects of starvation.

In the UK around a third of the 2.8 million people with diabetes go on to develop kidney damage.