High-protein diet and creatinine

[ryanbeckworth]

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Anyone ever wonder if eating sh**loads of protein could hurt your kidneys? I've been doing it for nearly half my life now, averaging 180 g/day. Since I was curious, I asked the nephrologist. The guy said that in animal studies there is clear evidence that high-protein kills kidneys faster. In humans, the data is there but there are doubts about it due to genetic variations. That's all fine and well, but I'd rather live longer and never experience the joys of dialysis.
I decided to have a basic metabolic panel done, which revealed a creatinine of 1.1. At my hospital, the normal range is 0.8 mg/dl to 1.4 mg/dl. Armed with this, I proceeded to ask the neph about it. He felt that I could be elevating my levels due to:

1. animal protein which has its own creatinine you need to filter

2. higher than normal levels of muscle mass

Either way, I decided to cut back my protein by around 50%.

Anyone care to weigh in with an opinion?

 

[Darth Vader]

What does your u/a show? I'd recc cutting back on protein too, but if you do have a lot of muscle mass, it's possible that your cr clearance is normal. Were you really dehydrated when you got your blood checked? Why were you getting it checked?

 

[ryanbeckworth]

My BUN was 23.

I don't think I was dehydrated, although I had worked out the day before.

I checked it because I am on a renal service and got paranoid.

 

[Darth Vader]

Originally posted by ryanbeckworth
My BUN was 23.

I don't think I was dehydrated, although I had worked out the day before.

I checked it because I am on a renal service and got paranoid.

Your BUN/Cr ratio was over 20. If you drank a lot of water, I suspect that your Cr would fall to 0.9 or less. If you are really paranoid, you should do stuff like a u/a, 24 hr urine protein analysis, and calculate your actual creatinine clearance. I suspect that it will all be wnl for you though.

 

[ryanbeckworth]

My BUN was 23.

I don't think I was dehydrated, although I had worked out the day before.

I checked it because I am on a renal service and got paranoid.

 

[ryanbeckworth]

If I was pre-renal then, I must be most of the time. I drink tons of water all day long, though I make way more trips to the BR than anyone else. LOL

 

[kg9921]

I suppose I'm not medically authorized to comment, but I've been a certified personal trainer for a while now, and this topic is always being brought up. What is your body weight, and body fat percentage? For a muscular, athletic (weights 4-5 times a week) athlete, a dosage of 1.5 grams per gram of LEAN bodyweight is a very common number. Some advanced athletes have been known to take in as much as 2 grams daily, and there have been no long term studies (to my knowledge) on males that indicates that a diet with that high a protein concentration can induce any negative affects on the liver. Note that higher doses in females have been linked to osteoporosis (sp) however. As you well know, hydration is key, and many other factors such as intake of carbohydrates and fiber should be in correct macronutritional dosage as well. If you are a 110 pound girl, you might be overdoing it, otherwise if you intend to be in dialysis much later in life, it might comfort you to know you'll be in the company of many, many athletes 🙂

 

[DrQuinn]

I was told by someone somewhere at sometime that humans are the only animals who can voluntarily go into kidney failure by eating too much protein. Animals eat almost 100% protein but never routeinly go into renal failure, but humans can.

Q, DO

 

[uclacrewdude]

i've got yer high-protein diet right here!

 

[huktonfonix]

Originally posted by kg9921
, a dosage of 1.5 grams per gram of LEAN bodyweight is a very common number. Some advanced athletes have been known to take in as much as 2 grams daily,/B]

That would be grams of protein per kilogram of ideal body weight. If you really must know do a metabolic cart on yourself. Resp can probably do it for you. My guess is you're overdoing the protein. As for the effects on the kidneys, I dunno, but I doubt that much excess protein is beneficial to building muscle mass.

 

[kg9921]

All he needs to do is get is his bodyfat measured and do simple math to determine his lean weight. Ideal is a misnomer, and by "ideal" you have guidelines that aren't applicable to those who are active. Example: the BMI ratio groups a 5'10 230 pound running back in the NFL as obese. The only real way to know is getting his BF checked, water displacement is the closest estimation, but a caliper test would easily suffice.

 

[CANES2006]

Why don't you tell us more about yourself? For example, what is your built, age, weight, or height? If you are really muscular and fairly young then a creatinine of 1.1 is well into the normal range.