Healthy kidneys continuously filter blood and regulate potassium levels in the body through urine. Potassium also participates in maintaining electrolyte balance, muscle activity and heart rate.
Fruits such as bananas, oranges, papayas, cantaloupe, or dates all provide potassium. WHO also lists bananas, papayas, and dates along with beans, green vegetables, and nuts as potassium-rich foods.
Instead of drinking juice, you should prioritize eating whole fruits to take advantage of fiber. One banana or a serving of papaya can become a simple snack, combined with a diverse diet.
However, it should not be understood that the more potassium-rich fruits you eat, the healthier your kidneys become. For healthy people, potassium from food is often well regulated by the body. But when kidney function declines, the ability to excrete potassium may decrease accordingly.
Spinach, kale, cabbage, beans and peas both provide potassium and supplement fiber, vitamins and beneficial plant compounds.
An important point is that potassium-rich foods often come with a diet low in processed foods. WHO notes that processing can reduce potassium levels in many foods, while a diet high in processed foods and low in vegetables and fruits often has low potassium levels.
Therefore, replacing a portion of packaged foods and fast foods with vegetables, beans and fresh fruits can help improve the overall quality of the diet. This is a healthy approach for blood pressure and metabolic health, thereby contributing to reducing risk factors for the kidneys.
Sweet potatoes, potatoes, taro and some tubers also contain significant amounts of potassium.
When processing, you should prioritize boiling, steaming or grilling, limit frying with too much oil and adding too much salt.
To have healthy kidneys, a simple way to build a kidney-friendly diet is to increase fresh food and reduce sodium.
WHO recommends increasing potassium at the same time as controlling sodium, because the balance between the two minerals significantly affects blood pressure.
On the meal table, you can prioritize green vegetables, beans, whole fruits, fish, whole grains and less processed foods; reduce instant noodles, processed meat, canned foods, fast food and salt-rich foods.
