6 ways to love your kidneys Show your body some extra kindness

Give these hardworking organs a little TLC by

adopting lifestyle tweaks to help keep them in great

shape

Ask yourself: have you done anything to care for your kidneys lately? If you haven’t, then it might be time to put them on your health radar. According to Kidney Health Australia, diabetes represents 37 per cent of all reported kidney disease cases.

“Your kidneys filter waste products and excess fluid from your blood,” explains Jane Overland, diabetes nurse practitioner from the Diabetes Centre at Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. “There’s also a link between kidney disease and other microvascular complications, such as eye disease and nerve damage, so people with kidney issues should be sure to have their eyes and feet regularly checked.”

Lifestyle changes can be protective and preventive, so if you have diabetes, consider adopting these kidney-friendly habits. more fish and chicken and a little less lamb and steak.

LOWDOWN

Eat a range of fermented foods including sauerkraut, miso, kimchi (fermented Korean vegetables) yoghurt and kefir (a fermented drink).

Check with your GP or endocrinologist if probiotic supplements are safe for you.

Eat more resistant starch. “This feeds good bacteria in your large intestine,” says Dr Jane Muir, Head of Translational Nutrition

Science in the Department of Gastroenterology at Monash University. “Good sources include oats, lentils, asparagus, artichokes, bananas and potatoes, particularly when cooked and cooled.” Opt for Carisma potatoes, which have a low glycaemic index, so they don’t spike blood sugar levels.