Anti-inflammatory diet wards off CKD

Individuals on a pro-inflammatory diet are at greater risk of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD), suggests a study, noting the importance of adopting an anti-inflammatory diet to prevent CKD.

A team of investigators examined the association between Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) and CKD in a meta-analysis. They identified six studies (three prospective and three cross-sectional) from the databases of PubMed, CBM, Cochrane Library, and Embase through 6 March 2023.

CKD risk showed a positive association with rising DII that reflected a pro-inflammatory diet. Individuals in the highest DII exposure category had a 44-percent higher overall risk of developing CKD (risk ratio [RR], 1.44, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.22–1.71; I2, 64.7 percent; p=0.015) than those in the lowest category, with medium heterogeneity.

Risk estimations from cross-sectional studies revealed a 64-percent increased CKD risk (RR, 1.64, 95 percent CI, 1.18–2.29; p=0.032) among participants in the highest DII exposure category than those in the lowest category, with significant heterogeneity.

In cohort studies, the risk of CKD was 28-percent higher among individuals in the highest DII exposure category (RR, 1.28, 95 percent CI, 1.14–1.44; I2, 17.2 percent; p=0.015) than those in the lowest category, with a low heterogeneity.

Cross-sectional and cohort studies exhibited a nonlinear and a linear dose-response relationship between DII and CKD risk, respectively.

Moreover, meta-regression revealed no significant association of publication year, study design, and country with the meta-analysis. The results persisted in the subgroup analysis.

“These findings further confirm DII as a tool of the inflammatory potential of the diet to prevent and delay the onset and progression of CKD,” the investigators said.