The glomerular filtration rate measures the amount of blood that is filtered by the kidneys in one minute. If the value is too low, it means that the organs are not working well and that the body is retaining toxins. Depending on the circumstances, you can speed up the pace by making changes to your diet and lifestyle; however, in cases where the speed is extremely low, it is necessary to intervene with drugs and other medical treatments.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Establishing the Current Glomerular Filtration Rate
Step 1. Take a test
The doctor may decide to measure this value through a creatinine blood test. This substance is a waste product present in the blood and if its concentration is too high, it means that the renal filtration capacity is below normal levels.
Alternatively, your doctor may opt for a creatinine clearance test that measures the amount of this substance in both the blood and urine
Step 2. Understand the meaning of the numbers
The results of the analyzes are only one factor to be taken into consideration in evaluating the glomerular filtration rate; the doctor also takes into account the patient's age, ethnicity, sex and build.
- If the rate is 90ml / min / 1.73m or more2, the kidneys are in good health;
- A result between 60 and 89 ml / min / 1.73 m2 indicates that the patient suffers from chronic second stage nephropathy; if the data falls within the range of 30-59 ml / min / 1.73 m2 kidney disease is in the third stage, while it is considered in the fourth stage when the rate is between 15 and 29 ml / min / 1.73 m2.
- When the filtration rate falls below 15ml / min / 1.73m2, kidney disease enters the fifth stage, which means that the kidneys no longer work.
Step 3. Talk to the doctor
This provides you with further details on the results of the exams and their impact on daily life; if the values are lower than normal, the doctor recommends some therapy which, however, varies from patient to patient.
- You need to make some changes to your diet and lifestyle in general, no matter what stage of the disease you are in. In the early stages, these new habits may be enough to get your values back to normal, especially if you've never had kidney problems in the past.
- In the last stages of chronic kidney disease, the doctor prescribes certain medicines to improve the function of the organs; such therapy should be accompanied by a healthy lifestyle and should not be regarded as the ultimate solution to the problem.
- As the disease progresses to its final stages, the patient is undergoing dialysis or put on a waiting list for a transplant.
Part 2 of 3: Diet and Lifestyle Changes
Step 1. Eat more vegetables and cut back on meat
The increase in creatinine goes hand in hand with a slowdown in the glomerular filtration rate; one of the two problems is usually not present without the other. Animal products contain creatine and creatinine, so you should limit your intake of these protein sources.
Vegetables, on the other hand, do not contain these substances. By maintaining a predominantly vegetarian diet, you reduce other risk factors for chronic kidney disease, including diabetes and hypertension
Step 2. Stop smoking
This bad habit increases the amount of toxins in the body that have to pass through the kidneys. By getting rid of this vice, you reduce the workload to which the organs are subjected and improve their ability to filter waste products.
Furthermore, smoking worsens hypertension which in turn is related to chronic kidney disease; as a result, keeping blood pressure at healthy levels can further improve glomerular filtration rate
Step 3. Follow a low-sodium diet
Damaged kidneys have great difficulty filtering sodium; thus consuming a lot of it you can tire them even more and lower the filtration rate.
- Eliminate salty foods from the diet or choose low-sodium variants when possible; try to flavor dishes with spices and herbs instead of relying solely on salt.
- You should consume more home cooked meals from scratch and cut back on packaged or pre-cooked ones; homemade ones generally contain a lower amount of sodium, because commercial ones use salt as a preservative.
Step 4. Reduce your potassium and phosphorus doses
Both are minerals that the kidneys have difficulty filtering, especially if they are already weak and damaged; avoid foods that are rich in them and do not take supplements that contain them.
- Potassium is found in pumpkins, sweet and regular potatoes, white beans, yogurt, halibut, orange juice, broccoli, cantaloupe, bananas, pork, lentils, milk, salmon, pistachios, raisins, chicken and tuna.
- Phosphorus is present in milk, yogurt, hard cheeses, cottage cheese, ice cream, lentils, whole grains, dried peas, nuts, seeds, sardines, cod, cola-based drinks and flavored waters.
Step 5. Drink the nettle leaf tea
Consuming one or two 250ml cups of this drink daily helps to reduce the concentration of creatinine in the body and, consequently, to increase the glomerular filtration rate.
- Ask your doctor for more details to make sure this herbal tea is safe for you based on your medical history;
- To prepare the drink, infuse two fresh nettle leaves in at least 250 ml of water, let it simmer and wait 10-20 minutes. Strain the leaves, discard them and sip the liquid while it is very hot.
Step 6. Get regular physical activity
In particular, cardiovascular training improves circulation. Because more blood is pumped around the body, the kidneys are able to filter out toxins much more efficiently and quickly.
- Remember that very strenuous activity can increase the breakdown of creatine into creatinine; as a result, the workload for the kidneys increases by decreasing the filtration rate value.
- The best thing to do is to have a steady routine of moderate exercise; for example, consider cycling or brisk walking for 30 minutes a day, 3-5 times a week.
Step 7. Manage your weight
In most cases, weight control is the normal result of healthy eating and physical activity. You should avoid dangerous or "miracle" diets unless prescribed by your doctor or kidney disease dietician.
Maintaining a normal weight allows blood to flow through the body with less difficulty and helps regulate blood pressure. Once good circulation is ensured, the ability to eliminate toxins and fluids through the kidneys also improves, resulting in an increase in glomerular filtration rate
Part 3 of 3: Medical Treatments
Step 1. Talk to a dietician who specializes in kidney disease
During the last stage of the disease, your doctor may recommend that you go to this specialist who can plan the best diet for your health condition.
- The dietician works with you, the nephrologist and the family doctor to reduce the stress of the kidneys while maintaining a good balance between the body's fluids and minerals.
- Most appropriate meal plans include factors similar to those described in this article - for example, you are instructed to reduce your intake of sodium, potassium, phosphorus, and protein.
Step 2. Identify any underlying causes
Most cases of chronic kidney disease and a reduced glomerular filtration rate are due to or related to other pathologies; it is therefore necessary to keep these disorders under control before other parameters of renal function can be improved.
- Hypertension and diabetes are two of the most common causes;
- When the source of the problem is not easily identifiable, get further investigations to diagnose the problem; these are urinalysis, ultrasound and computed tomography. In certain situations, your doctor may recommend a biopsy to evaluate a small sample of kidney tissue.
Step 3. Take prescription medications
When there is another disease that triggers nephropathy or when kidney health conditions are causing other problems, your doctor may prescribe some active ingredients to manage the situation as a whole.
- Hypertension is often related to a reduced glomerular filtration rate, so you may need some medicine that lowers blood pressure; consider ACE inhibitors (captopril, enalapril) or angiotensin II receptor antagonists (losartan, valsartan) among other possibilities. These drugs keep blood pressure stable by reducing the concentration of protein in the urine and consequently the work that the kidneys have to do.
- During the later stages of chronic kidney disease the organs are unable to produce an important hormone called "erythropoietin", so the nephrologist may prescribe active ingredients to remedy the problem.
- You may need vitamin D supplements or other substances that keep phosphorus levels in check, as the kidneys are unable to do this job properly.
Step 4. Review drug therapy with your doctor
All medicines are filtered by the kidneys, so you should speak to your nephrologist about any active substance you plan to use when the parameters of these organs are not optimal; this means testing every over-the-counter and prescription drug.
- It may be necessary to completely avoid NSAIDs and selective COX-2 inhibitors. Among the non-steroidal anti-inflammatories are mentioned ibuprofen and naproxen, while a typical inhibitor of COX-2 is celecoxib; both of these drug classes are related to an increase in cases of kidney disease.
- Check with your doctor before taking any herbal remedies or alternative treatments. "Natural" cures aren't necessarily better, and if you're not careful, you could take something that triggers a drop in glomerular filtration rate.
Step 5. Undergo periodic tests to monitor this parameter
Even if you can improve your filtration rate, you should check it on a regular basis throughout the rest of your life, especially if you have had very low values or if you run a high risk of kidney disease.
Glomerular filtration rate and kidney function naturally decrease over the years, so your doctor may recommend that you regularly perform tests to monitor this decline; in this way, it is able to modify the drug therapy or to suggest dietary changes based on the values found
Step 6. Undergo dialysis
If the filtration rate is very low and you are in a condition of kidney failure, you must perform this treatment to eliminate waste products and excess fluids from the body.
- Hemodialysis involves the use of a machine, a sort of "artificial kidney", which functions as a filter;
- Peritoneal dialysis uses the abdominal lining to remove waste products from the blood.
Step 7. Wait for the kidney transplant
This is another option for people with advanced kidney disease and extremely slow filtration rates. In order for the surgery to take place, the donor must be compatible with you; it is often a relative, but in some cases the kidney may come from a stranger.
- Not all patients with terminal kidney disease are good candidates for transplantation; age and medical history are key criteria to consider.
- Once you've received your transplant, you still need to carefully monitor your diet and kidney health as a whole to prevent your glomerular filtration rate from dropping again.
