TOBACCO - Tobacco in all its forms is especially harmful to individuals with Polycystic Kidney Disease. Tobacco diminishes the blood supply to the kidney. Nicotine (a component of tobacco) causes constriction of individual minute vessels. This in turn, causes a further tightening of the blood flow within the kidney.

An abundant, rich, blood supply is needed constantly by the kidney to continuously bathe it with vital renewed nourishment. Anything which decreases renal blood flow, will rapidly accelerate the downward progression of kidney disease. Included among things which decreases kidney blood flow is dehydration.

Additionally, the release of renin (a hormone which raises blood pressure in Polycystic Kidney Disease) is triggered by constricted kidney blood flow. This outpouring of renin quickly raises blood pressure, sometimes causing spikes in blood pressure with wide variations. Uncontrollable high blood pressure accounts for many of the numerous kidney transplants performed. The incidence of aneurysms is increased in Polycystic Kidney Disease. There exists a unfavorable relationship between smokers and those individuals with aneurysms.

Tobacco diminishes renal blood flow; it raises blood pressure; it lowers calcium absorption; it is a member of the nightshade family and as such is high in solanine (which interferes with calcium absorption and increases oxalic acid production); it promotes illness, it depletes the body of anti-oxidants, it ages one rapidly, it can lead to emphysema, it stains teeth and fingers; it causes skin to become unusually dry and cracked; and it causes cancer.

I repeatedly nudged my husband to stop smoking. I tried everything. I would cry; I would accuse him of wanting to leave me an early widow. I would warn him that it would make him impotent.

Once he quit, surprisingly, I found myself missing his stale lingering sour cigarette smell. It took a small moment to get used to the idea that he now smelled fresh and clean. In reality what was the probable cause of my husband laying aside this habit was that he noticed after eating a rich French meal which he followed by smoking a mild Cuban cigar, he experienced some disturbing chest tightness.

Above is a picture of a tobacco leaf showing the underside infected with blue mold which is thought to be highly carcinogenic. Sugar-curing tobacco may enhance the growth of molds.

CAFFEINE - In animal research studies with Polycystic Kidney Disease, caffeine is harmful to Polycystic Kidney Disease. It increases cyclic AMP which stimulates polycystic kidney cyst growth. Caffeine raises blood pressure, and in PKD animal studies, causes an early death. Individuals have reported kidney pain from drinking caffeine. A recent article shows that caffeine consumption causes calcium to be excreted in the urine, contributing to kidney stone formation. PKD'rs have a 30% increased risk for developing kidney stones without the caffeine (and baking soda or sodium bicarbonate). OPC31260 an experimental drug not yet released looks promising for preventing kidney cysts from expanding and filling with fluid. Its mechanism of action is as a vasopressin 2 receptor blocker. V2 stimulates cyclic AMP which causes an increase in cysts and caffeine increases cyclic AMP. We have the possibility for a cure approaching us PKD'rs and our children. It is counterproductive to drink caffeine which stimulates cyclic AMP and take another drug to suppress it.

To the left is a coffee plant.

CHOCOLATE - Chocolate contains caffeine. This happens to be my ultimate indulgence. I have tried all kinds of chocolate including those which contain no milk, no sugar, and are simply pure chocolate. A Napa Valley wine maker has turned his talents toward chocolate and treats each bean like a wine vintage. The result is sugarless chocolate which tastes sweet. I have tried one which is fat free and caffeine free. All chocolate, even inhaling some of a chocolate dust or powder, raises my blood pressure for days. I experience a rebound headache two days later.

To the left is a picture of a cacao (chocolate) plant.

A surprise to me, was that many Pacific Islanders find the taste of chocolate something to be avoided. Perhaps it is in part due to the abundance of fresh tropical fruits in their diet? I noticed my own craving for chocolate is greatly diminished by drinking the juice of two freshly squeezed island lemons (sometimes called Myer lemons, which contains a unique lemon flavor). Another is to increase the amount of vitamin B complex. This diminishes a sweet tooth.

Eating chocolate has been long associated with a man's love. After school my Father would take my sister and I to the store and we were allowed to choose a nickel's worth of candy. Valentine's Day is February 14, a day set aside for lovers' and the giving of chocolate.

Like with coffee, these beans are roasted, almost to the point of being slightly burned. I think when seeds or beans are roasted their essence changes to something else which may alter the structure of the plant and perhaps intensify the adverse reactions.

COFFEE - Coffee contains caffeine as does tea, (even green tea). Another long standing habit I had was sipping a very small demitasse cup of French coffee, that was freshly roasted, freshly ground and freshly brewed. This raised my blood pressure for three days duration. Then three days later I experienced a hard hitting caffeine withdrawal migraine. I quickly broke that one. The beans are roasted before being ground. Green coffee is not usually drunk as a beverage.

COLA - Melanie has asked for a list of reasons to stop drinking cola. The best reasons are her very own —too many calories and it is detrimental to one with Polycystic Kidney Disease.

Sandy listed some uses for cola :)
l. To clean a toilet pour a can of cola into the toilet bowl. Let the "real
thing" sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes
stains from vitreous china.

2. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers, rub the bumper with a
crumpled up piece of Reynolds Wrap dipped in cola.

3. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals pour a can of cola
over the terminals to bubble away any corrosion.

4. To loosen a rusted bolt apply a cloth soaked in cola to the rusted
bolt for several minutes. Also pouring cola on lug nuts will loosen them for
easy removal.

5. To remove grease from clothes empty a can of cola into a load of
greasy clothes, add detergent and run through a regular cycle. The cola will help loosen grease stains.

6. Cola will clean road haze from your windshield.

Cola beverages are high in caffeine. Some companies are known to add additional caffeine to give you that morning jolt. Caffeine in and of itself, raises blood pressure Most people die from heart disease. The majority of individuals with Polycystic Kidney Disease die of heart disease often related to high blood pressure and left ventricular hypertrophy (enlargement of the heart muscle).
Cola beverages are high in sugars or artificial sweeteners both of which cause what is known as browning of organs. Browning of organs is manifested by rapid premature cellular demise within affected organs such as the beta cells of the pancreas. This can lead to diabetes—a failure of the pancreas. Diabetes is the number one cause of kidney failure. Diabetics are the largest group receiving transplants or dialysis.
Colas are high in phosphates. For maximum effectiveness, it is thought that a diet low in phosphates is best begun before the onset of kidney failure.
Caffeine causes an in increase in the formation of cysts. In the laboratory animals this caused an increase in polycystic kidney cysts. In humans it is linked with breast fibrocystic disease, in males epididymal cysts.
Colas trigger hunger and craving for more sugary sweet calorie rich nutrient poor foods. For someone trying to get off caffeine, It may be possible to delay the caffeine withdrawal headache by eating every 50 minutes, say, a small piece of raw fruit or vegetable—like a portion of orange, or a slice of apple or a carrot stick. The body has been trained by the caffeine (or nicotine in tobacco) to cycle every 50 minutes by producing a drop in blood sugar; this causes the craving to begin once again. I have read if one takes plenty of rose hips vitamin C and B complex vitamins this helps to kick the habit. A drink to try to abolish these cravings is a juice made from carrot, parsley, and beet. This maybe substituted for the morning cup of coffee. One can attain an added zip similar to caffeine without the jitters and rush of highs and lows.

ALCOHOL - Candy causes an alcohol ferment to develop within the body and is a trigger for migraine headaches for me. The yeast formed in alcohol is detrimental to digestion. It will cause a wipe out of the normal flora of the intestines, thereby causing a rebound overgrowth of other organisms. This overgrowth of other organisms is usually a yeast. Yeast feeds on sugars. Then the body starts craving, demanding more and more sugar to feed the yeast. Vital nutrients remain unabsorbed. B vitamins are known to be lost through alcohol consumption. If one has liver cysts even a slight exposure to alcohol, just inhaled from cleaning sprays, can cause liver cysts to grow and ache. I have experienced this and for these reasons, I avoid sugars, vinegars, and all alcohol, including inhaling sprays from window cleaners which contain alcohol.

WINE - Other times, I thought it was sociable to share a glass of fine wine with guests. I soon had to decide which was more important to me— to suffer the pain and the weariness after drinking a bit of alcohol or to socially interact with friends by drinking wine. Even so much as (15 ml) sip of wine, wipes me out for three days. My liver takes at least this long to recover from the pain. I have found an abundance of many pleasant and creative ways to relate with friends. Habits are long standing and produce difficult patterns which are extremely hard to break. Any ideas are appreciated.

Red wine is said to have medical benefit as a heart protecterant especially when coupled with what has come to be known as the Mediterranean diet (from Crete, Greece). A similar benefit can be derived from drinking dark grape juice and eating the Mediterranean diet.

And what is the Mediterranean diet? Why this is the alkaline diet in another form, in another culture. Scientists discovered that the people of Crete used olive oil daily on their food. They consumed an 1/8 the amount of meat as people in the United States. Coincidentally, the peoples of Crete use abundant amounts of saffron in their cooking. They ate a multiple servings of fresh fruits and vegetables. The Cretes ate 30 times the amount of green beans as people in the United States. When surveyed, half the people could not remember having eaten any fruit or vegetables on a given day. The blood levels of Cretes were reported to have an unusually high level of alpha-linoleic acid. The studies done with red wine alone were performed in the laboratory on a petrie dish. The alcohol was removed from the wine and the isolated tannins were used.

In human clinical trials the benefit of drinking red wine has been noted when there are also dietary changes that raise blood levels of circulating alpha linoleic acid. Some experimenters attempted to prove that by drinking red wine and eating alpha-linoleic acid daily that heart protecting effects could be re-established. This was shown to be true. What is alpha-linoleic acid? It is found in abundance in hemp seed, walnuts and more. Because I experienced liver cyst growth while taking flax, I now use a few drops of hemp seed oil on my salad as a food source of all the essential fatty acids and vitamin E. It also contains vitamin D, which is needed to activate calcium absorption. Another source are almonds and sesame seeds.

If you really prefer the taste of wine, there are several Napa vineyards that produce non-alcoholic chardonnay, merlot, and cabernet wines. These wines are made and aged the same as their alcoholic counterparts. The alcohol is removed by a process similar to decaffeinating of the coffee bean.

BEER, ALE - Beer and ale cause prolactin hormone to be produced which contributes to liver cyst growth. The ferment which produces beer is an alcohol ferment. An alcohol ferment is a deterrent to digestion and a deterrent to the assimilation of nutrients from food. I have experienced that it creates aches and pains in the liver and kidneys. Individuals who drink large amounts of alcoholic beverages daily become malnourished. The body becomes depleted of the B vitamins. I have observed that these individuals appear to have skinny thighs and bulbous noses with a reddish hue. The significance of this is unknown to me.

YEAST, SUGAR, WHEAT- These three items often appear mixed together in different baked goods, snacks, breads, and even pastas. This combination has a potentiating affect on symptoms experienced with Polycystic Kidney Disease. Consuming two of the above together is injurious, and for some with liver cysts, wheat alone seems to exacerbate symptoms. These three give forth an alcohol ferment to the body as opposed to a lactic acid ferment. Lactic acid is manufactured by a non-yeasted sugar free spelt bread. This type of acid can easily be breathed off through the lungs whereas an alcohol ferment requires buffering from the kidneys.

As we are all each unique in our reactions, try enjoying a slice of yeast free spelt bread. If I eat exclusively flat breads (like pita, pocket breads, tortillas, naan, or crackers) made from spelt without the addition of any yeast, sugars, or wheat, I have a noticeable lessening of symptoms (i.e., pain, aches, bloating, belching, stomach distress, itching, and craving for sweets).

last updated: Thursday, February 7, 2008 6:21 AM