WATER FOR PKD?
Recently published PKD medical research point to the possibility that by increasing water intake, we can slow down kidney decline and cyst growth. In the PKD model, this has resulted in a reduction in plasma vasopressin levels; renal cyst cell proliferation decreased; and in the rats who increased their water intake, they slowed PKD progression; diminished kidney cyst growth; and these PKD models developed smaller cystic kidneys with a lower number of kidney cysts. Sustained hydration might be beneficial to PKD’rs especially early in the disease by limiting the detrimental effects of vasopressin. The rats drank the equivalent of 20 liters of water per day. Human clinical trials have yet to begin but are certainly warranted. This works in both ADPKD and ARPKD. No one can give an answer as to how much water should PKD’rs drink, but common sense says sufficient water intake would be to keep plasma vasopressin levels near a point that renders urine osmolality equal to or modestly lower than that of plasma. To know for certain how much of the water cure is prudent therapy, a carefully controlled clinical trial seems justified. Some of us have tried 4 liters/ day. Others have tried about 8 liters/day. We have yet to see if this makes a difference. It is not known if this helps liver cysts or kidney cysts, but we are giving it a try. Send an email. |
Here are some recent articles on water, a possible
therapy for PKD Polycystic Kidney Disease. To read the full article choose
from the pull down menu or click the orange links. The writings beneath
each article are short excerpts taken from these interesting papers.
| Water for ADPKD? Probably, Yes | Torres V E 2006 | Am Soc Nephrol 17: 2089–2091, 2006. doi: 10.168 1/ASN 2006060 60 3 |
Increased fluid intake may be beneficial
to some patients with ADPKD, at least in early stages of the disease, ,
, , If increased fluid intake, either by
itself or together with the administration of V2 receptor antagonists,
is proved to slow the rate of growth of polycystic kidneys, then its
long-term safety will need to be considered. . . .A number of studies of
other possible treatments for PKD have been published during 2005 to 2006.
Long-acting octreotide may inhibit cAMP production. . .Rapamycin, an inhibitor
of mammalian target of rapamycin (32–34), have been effective in
animal models of cystic disease. The pace of development of new potential
therapies for ADPKD raises the hope that its inexorable clinical course
soon may be modified. .Caffeinated beverages should be discouraged because
caffeine inhibits phosphodiesterase; enhances cAMP accumulation; and potentiates
the effects of vasopressin on chloride secretion, cell proliferation, and
cyst growth, at least in vitro . . .Calorically sweetened beverages and fruit
drinks are major contributors to the epidemic of obesity in the United
States and should be avoided (28). Because drinking tap water has been
associated in some studies with a slightly increased risk for bladder cancer
in men, whereas non-tap water has not, high-quality or bottled water may
be preferable . . .A retrospective analysis of the MDRD study (139 participants
with and 442 without ADPKD; GFR at entry 25 to 55 ml/min per 1.73 m2) was
performed to examine the relationship between fluid intake (reflected by
24-h urine volume and urine osmolality) and renal disease progression.
Higher urine volumes and lower urine osmolalities were associated with
faster GFR decline regardless of whether the patient had ADPKD. The authors
considered two possible explanations. The first was that excessive fluid
intake and high urine volume cause faster renal disease progression and
possibly cyst growth in ADPKD. The second was that high urine volume with
low urine osmolality is the result and not the cause of faster renal disease
progression (19). The results by Nagao et al. (18) do not support the first
explanation; on the contrary, they suggest that increased fluid intake
may be beneficial to some patients with ADPKD, at least in early stages
of the disease. . .Long-acting octreotide may inhibit cAMP production,
and a pilot study of patients with ADPKD has shown promising results
(30). PD184352, an inhibitor of mitogen-activated protein kinase/ extracellular
signal–regulated kinase (31), and rapamycin, an inhibitor of mammalian
target of rapamycin (32–34), have been effective in animal models
of cystic disease. The pace of development of new potential therapies for
ADPKD raises the hope that its inexorable clinical course soon may be modified. |
Vasopressin
Directly Regulates Cyst Growth in Polycystic Kidney |
Torres V E 2008 | Am Soc Nephrol. 2008 Jan;19(1):102-8. Epub 2007 Nov 21. |
These observations indicate that AVP is a powerful modulator of cystogenesis
and provide further support for clinical trials of V2 receptor antagonists
in PKD. |
| Increased Water Intake Decreases Progression Polycystic Kidney Disease PCK Rat | Wallace D 2006 | J Am Soc Nephrol 17: 2220–2227, 2006. doi: 10.1681/ASN.2006030251 |
Arginine vasopressin (AVP) is an important
antidiuretic hormone that mediates its effect through the activation
of vasopressin V2 receptors (AVPV2R) and the subsequent stimulation of
adenylyl cyclase and synthesis of cAMP (10). . .Normally, urine is concentrated
to an osmolality that is greater than plasma. Day-to-day maintenance
of urine output depends on appropriate plasma AVP levels to regulate
osmotic water reabsorption by distal tubules and collecting ducts. Relatively
normal plasma levels of AVP may be sufficient to stimulate cyst epithelial
cell growth and renal enlargement in patients with PKD. Some patients
have an intrinsic defect in the capacity to concentrate urine maximally,
potentially leading to even greater levels of plasma AVP than normal
(11–13). . .Increased water intake sufficient to cause a reduction
in plasma (arginine vasopressin) AVP levels decreased renal cell proliferation,
and slowed PKD progression in PCK rats. We propose that sustained hydration
by increased water intake may be beneficial to some patients with PKD by
limiting the detrimental effects of (arginine vasopressin) AVP on renal cyst
growth. |
| Therapy for Polycystic Kidney Disease? It’s Water | Grantham JJ 2008 | J Am Soc Nephrol 19: 1–2, 2008. doi: 10.1681/ASN.2007101100 |
| Now we are confronted by the bizarre prospect that water is the“cure” for hereditary diseases that grotesquely bloat the kidneys with . . . water. . .Cysts arise in renal tubules when epithelial cells focally proliferate, leading to tiny outpouchings, that progressively expand, upstream fluid from glomerular filtrate fills the budding cyst cavity. Later, after they separate from the parent tubules. Two ordinarily quiescent renal processes, epithelial cell proliferation and solute-driven fluid secretion, come storming out of hiding and push a relatively small number of cystic segments to take over eventually the parenchymal landscape, driving functional glomeruli and tubules into oblivion. .We knew this much about PKD for more than a decade. . .Although studies clearly implicate a central role for vasopressin and cAMP in promoting kidney enlargement and reducing renal function in PKD, a study from the Mayo laboratory in this issue of the JASN9 provides definitive proof. The dramatic results in this report are consonant with the view that epithelial cell growth is of paramount importance to the formation of the cyst as well to the overall increase of renal size in ARPKD. . .Of the hormones capable of increasing cAMP production in collecting ducts, only AVP (arginine vasopressin) is persistently elevated in the plasma of humans. Where do the cysts form in ARPKD? In collecting ducts. Landbased animals are normally antidiuretic for most hours of the day and night, except for short periods when relatively large volumes of water are imbibed. Therefore, plasma AVP levels are usually high enough to activate adenylyl cyclase, generate cAMP, activate aquaporin-2, increase collecting duct permeability to water, and concentrate urinary osmolality above that of plasma. Thus, cyst growth is “clamped” by vasopressin. . .How much water should I drink now? Patients have already figured out that if extra water decreases vasopressin and cAMP levels, then why isn’t plain old water a useful therapy? No one can give an informed, definitive answer to that question, but common sense leads me to think that sufficient water should be drunk to keep plasma vasopressin levels near a point that renders urine osmolality equal to or modestly lower than that of plasma. To know for certain how much of the “water cure” is prudent therapy, a carefully controlled clinical trial seems justified. |
| Sirolimus Reduces Polycystic Liver Volume in ADPKD Patients After Renal Transplantation | Torres V E 2008 | J Am Soc Nephrol. 2008 Mar;19(3):631-8. Epub 2008 Jan 16 |
Treatment with sirolimus was associated with decreased
polycystic liver volume, perhaps by preventing aberrant activation of
mTOR in epithelial cells lining the cysts. |
| Sirolimus ameliorates the enhanced expression of metalloproteinases in a rat model of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. | Berthier CC 2007 | Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2008 Mar;23(3):880-9. Epub 2007 Nov 27. |
| Sirolimus treatment was associated with a marked improvement of MMP-2
and MMP-14 overexpression, and this correlated also with less matrix and TBM alterations and milder cystic disease. |
| Therapeutic interventions for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. | Edelstein CL 2008 | Nephrol News Issues. 2008 Mar; 22(3):25-6 |
| Therapeutic interventions being tested: tolvaptan, octreotide, sirolimus, everolimus and statins, ACE inhibitors and ARBs. |
NOTES FROM A FRIEND - A few notes written by a friend on water - I am reading a most interesting book about water (and salt). It explains how water picks up and stores the energy of the environment it passes through. Once we drink this water it then gives it on to our cells. The best water is a low mineral spring water that bubbles out of the earth. Putting water into pipes and pumping it causes it to lose its vitality, its vibrancy, its life force energy. This means it cannot pass on vitality to us. The book explains why Lourdes water, for example, is holy water - holy means to make whole, to heal - it is healing water. It is healing water because it spirals up from very deep inside the earth and has been "programmed' with a particularly harmonious electro-magnetic movement known as - Schwingungen. This living vital water sets up the same harmonious movement in the person who drinks it, or baths in it, and that harmony resonates within the body so it can then heal itself. The book contains a photo of a particle of Lourdes water that has been cooled to minus 5°C and photographed. It shows clear, harmonious well structured crystalline formations. We can make our lifeless water living again when we put a handful of crystals (raw or cut) in a large jug of water and leave them overnight. The crystals will revitalize the water. I have also been utilizing Himalayan crystal salts in this same water. We drink a teaspoon of the liquid solution every morning in a large glass of water. Without knowing what it was good for, I continued doing it when I got home. I had noticed that the stiffness had gone out of my joints but it wasn't until I read the water and salt book, that I realized it was the salt. It comes in pinkish crystal chunks. I put two or three chunks in a liter of water and from that I take a teaspoon of this every morning in a glass of water. As it gets used up, I just add more water and once in a while another chunk of salt crystal. There should always be some undissolved crystal in the bottom of the jug. The whole family is drinking it now, plus two liters of water during the day, Mum's scalp is practically healed completely. It is the crystalline structure of the salt, formed from the drying out of ancient seas and pressed into crystals by the massive weight of the Himalayas, that resonates with the fluid in our bodies and allows the body to heal itself. What I found very exciting is the work of a Japanese scientist, Dr. Masaru Emoto. He 'informed' water with words, then cooled it to minus 5°C, and photographed the result. The word 'love' created a beautiful harmonious crystal pattern. The words 'you make me sick' created a really ugly, misshapen result. And so on. But the exciting thing was that when he thawed out the 'sick' water and spoke the word 'love' to it, then cooled it down again to minus 5°C, there was this beautiful harmonious crystalline form. Just looking at the pictures told me that no matter what has happened to us, no matter what negative, destructive messages we have stored in our body fluid (we are over 70% water!), this can be reversed by positive, loving words and thoughts. No wonder prophets have proclaimed Love Thyself. Love Thyself. Love Thyself. Love heals all!! |
SOLE´ - There are many opinions on solé. I will tell you my own experience. After reading the book, Water and Salt the Essence of Life (translated from German) my plan was to begin using Himalayan pink salt and to have a drop or two of solé added to a full glass of mineral water each morning upon arising. But I was reluctant. I thought the salt might cause a rise in blood pressure. I really hesitated for at least a year. Then my friend in Germany told me about his experience with solé. I had visited him and his family about two years before. He runs 10 -20 miles a couple times a week. He is lean and his wife cooks many foods that are grown in their own garden and any meats they eat is demeter (this is more than organic). She grinds her own spelt flour and bakes her own bread daily. Still with all of this, when it came time for his yearly physical all his lab values were elevated - his pancreatic studies were off; his liver; his cholesterol. He was called back to the doctor. He spoke with me about this. I told him I suspected that he was not drinking enough water. Was this possible? He admitted that this was true. He did not want to get up and leave his desk to use the bathroom so he limited the amount of water that he drank. I explained that he could try to drink more water and see if this corrected everything. If he did this first perhaps there was no need to take medication which he probably would have never taken. My friend agreed and began drinking more water. In the meantime his wife tried solé. It is a normal saline solution formed by putting large halite or pink Himalayan salt crystals in a full beaker of mineral water and allowing it to sit overnight. Then in the morning to mixing a teaspoon (I use a few drops) in a full glass of mineral water first thing before anything else. At the end of the year my friend saw the doctor once again and once again the doctor called his home and asked him to return to the office, only this time the doctor was astonished as all his lab values not only had returned to normal but to low normal. The doctor was convinced that my friend had been taking some medication to bring his cholesterol and pancreas down to the low normal range. This convinced me to give solé a try as well as Himalayan pink salt. After 3 months i went to the Mayo clinic and my eye doctor told me (at age 60) I had twenty twenty vision and it had improved. He said something was hydrating the vitreous of my eye. My kidney functioning was the best it had been in ten years and my liver functioning was totally normal. And my blood pressure was low, very low. My blood pressure had never before measured low at the Mayo. It always spiked there. So this was a first for me improved kidney functioning with a creatinine of 0.8; improved iothalmate clearance better than it had ever been in ten years; improved liver functioning and no anemia. |
SPIRITUALITY I do not which to mislead; though I was raised Catholic, I am not of a particular faith. I do welcome each day when I awaken. I love the smells of the early morning especially when it has been kissed by the rain. I find a magnificent sunrise inspiring. I find the quietness after a snowfall so utterly relaxing. It makes me smile to hear giggling laughter from a young child. I enjoy the pleasures of eating fine food cooked by someone else. On my visit to Lourdes I had traveled to Europe on a grand gourmand tour of France eating my way through fabulous three-star restaurants. I was beginning to become very ill. My cystic liver symptoms were manifesting and I thought perhaps I would not be able to enjoy the world. Just outside of Lourdes was a village called Eugénie les Bains, named for the Empress Eugénie, the last empress of France. This is home to a spa gourmand restaurant and castle run by master chef Michele Guerard. He began the movement of a cooking school known as Cuisine Minceur or Nouvelle Cuisine or more directly, skinny cuisine which has now become known as spa cuisine. He had this idea of cooking French dishes so they were not as rich and the food prepared by this method was to be healthier. France and Germany have it in their labor laws that each working person once a year must go to a spa for rejuvenation. This place was such a spa. Massage was offered there – Facials – Thermal white mud baths – Effortless walks in nature - even the food was left to individual choice. You could eat gourmand rich food, or you could eat bistro food or you could eat skinny food (Cuisine Minceur) prepared especially to shed a few pounds while not lacking at all in flavors and tasting absolutely delicious. Landes, the regional state of Eugénie les Bains, is home to paté de foie grois or stuffed duck liver. Surprisingly this region has the lowest rate of heart disease rate in all of France, and much lower than within the United States. I took a side trip to Lourdes because I was curious about this healing water. You can well imagine when one is just starting to feel sick and one hears of a place that has healing waters, well why not check it out? While there I met several different people from around the world. Some were dressed in saffron robes with shaved heads, others were in kimonos, others in Western clothing and others were dressed in the traditional garments of the Basque de Pays. I didn't think anyone was from a particular faith. The novices interpreted for the visitors by speaking many different languages. Some I could easily understand and others were new to my ears. My eyes could see we all had one thing in common and that was the will and the hope to find health. Following this bath in healing waters, I traveled to the town of Nevers, France continuing to sample the wonderful foods of this region. Unexpectedly I was pleasantly surprised when I bumped into Bernadette once again. As a child, it was she who had seen visions of a lady in blue in Lourdes. It was for many years that simple farmers had seen visions of a woman watching their crops. This held a great contradiction at the time for the worship of a male god and the thought of a female protector was almost blasphemy. The next stop took me to Trier, Germany. Here happened to be the anniversary viewing of the cloth that Jesus wore while he was upon earth. Trier is the oldest city in all of Germany. All these events coincided with my gourmet food tasting adventure throughout Europe. Through food I found a spiritual healing. It culminated with a visit to an electric acupuncturist in Trier, who used a special device that would let this doctor know whether any old infections were present within the body from past experiences or from my parents or even my ancestors. The treatment used was a blend of both homeopathic medicine, allopathic medicine, herbs, supplements and diet. It was a very interesting time, with the promise of a cure in this very lifetime. Shortly after this trip, I received a liver resection from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota that has been curative for me. Many many years prior to receiving my liver resection at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota USA, I traveled around the world. I am a traveler. Travel is my passion. Next is food, I really enjoy tasting foods, especially healing foods. Through my travels, I have come to discover what it is in various cultures that brings individuals to heal themselves. Each culture, no matter how poor or how rich, has a means, a place, a person, to seek out so its citizens, its tribal members, can find health. I have visited the psychic surgeons of the Philippines as they opened wounds almost magically. I have been to homeopathic physicians in Trier, Germany. I had no response from the ayurvedic medicine of India. I have incorporated many forms of healing and all types of healers – reichen, visualization techniques, shiatzu, acupuncture, family constellations, aromatherapy, color therapy, muscle testing, chiropractors, herbalarios, lomi-lomi massage, herbs to bring a body with cystic organs to health. Sometimes when one gets afflicted with cystic organs, it manifests in various forms. If the kidneys are the first to bring this disease to light, many doctors have knowledge on how to treat this. However, when the liver starts to go awry, the number of doctors who can help ease the impact of liver cysts is very limited and it takes a seeker, an explorer with a sincere wish to find health. I am such a seeker. I have used all to bring about a healing to this body. A great part of what has helped me to heal is listening to each of you telling how this treatment helped or how such and such treatment or food didn’t help or that something worked for someone else but for you it just didn’t do anything. I would like to say thank you for helping me. Thank you for the health you bring me today. This website is dedicated to each of you. It is given with gratitude. Send an email with any questions. |
last updated Tuesday, April 29, 2008 8:12 AM