Caffeine and Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD)

2014-03-12 06:53

Caffeine, which is often regarded as the world’s most popular drug which has been accepted part of the daily lives of people around the globe. And caffeine can be found in three popular drinks- coffee, tea and cola, and it can also be found in chocolate. However, is caffeine good for polycystic kidney disease patients? This is a common questions that most PKD patients should be concerned. Because PKD patients need to pay attention of what they eat and drink to help prevent the enlargement of kidney cysts and reduce the kidney damage.

As we know, patients with PKD need to keep a kidney-friendly diet, which can help reduce the kidney burden and prevent further damage to kidneys. However, although patients can eat something, but they need to take the foods in a proper amount, because things will develop in the opposite direction when they become extreme. So PKD patients need to eat all the foods in a proper amount.

Caffeine is a common and popular drink for people, and it may have some benefits for PKD patients and they can also cause bad effects on patients. Usually, patients with PKD need to keep a proper amount of caffeine in their daily life, which is usually below 200 mg, and it cant be drunk close to bed (a minimum of 4-6 hours).

There are some side effects that can be caused by caffeine intake.

- Feeling more fatigue when the caffeine wears off

- Feeling of anxiety or irritability

- Increase the heart beat

- Sleep disturbance which is because patients need to take more time to falling asleep

- Frequent awakening during the night

- A possible rate of increasing the cysts development

- Causing high blood pressure

However, there are also some benefits of taking caffeine.

- Reduce the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease

- Reduce the risk of colon cancer

- Reduce the risk of developing gallstones

- Helping treating asthma, stopping headaches, boosting mood and preventing cavities

From above, there are both advantages and disadvantages for PKD patients taking caffeine, and patients need to keep proper amount of caffeine in their daily life, which can be helpful for their illness.

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