Fasting-mimicking diet may improve renoprotection in CKD patients: Study

The composition of the body, serum level of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), cardiovascular and endothelial risk factors, inflammation and oxidative stress markers, renal function markers, regenerative markers (circulating stem cells), and psychocognitive evaluation were among the physiological markers that the study assessed before, during, and, for some parameters, a year after the end of the intervention. 

The degradation of kidney structures and function in rodents was slowed by 6 cycles of the proprietary low-salt FMD. This resulted in a significant decrease in glomerular and tubular injury, as well as a significant decrease in the albumin-to-creatine ratio and blood urea nitrogen at 4 and 6 weeks following the diet cycles.

The FMD improved proteinuria, decreased inflammation, and alleviated renal impairment in the clinical study. When combined, these early findings provide credence to the viability of FMD and the necessity of conducting extensive randomized studies to determine whether the diet's disease-reversing and regenerative benefits would also apply to people. Overall, the findings of the pilot clinical trial demonstrated that in individuals with stage-III CKD, the FMD is well tolerated and preserves lean muscle mass.

Reference:

Villani, V., Frank, C. N., Cravedi, P., Hou, X., Bin, S., Kamitakahara, A., Barbati, C., Buono, R., Da Sacco, S., Lemley, K. V., De Filippo, R. E., Lai, S., Laviano, A., Longo, V. D., & Perin, L. (2024). A kidney-specific fasting-mimicking diet induces podocyte reprogramming and restores renal function in glomerulopathy. In Science Translational Medicine (Vol. 16, Issue 771). American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). https://doi.org/10.1126/scitranslmed.adl5514