Benefits of celery leaves for healthier kidneys

Celery is a type of vegetable that is often found in various foods, from meatballs to juices. This green leaf turns out to be believed to have a myriad of properties that are good for health, including the kidneys. What are the benefits of celery leaves for the kidneys?

Benefits of celery leaves for kidney health

Celery leaves or Apium graveolens is a type of vegetable that comes from the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Since centuries ago, celery leaves have been known for their health benefits, such as gout, pain relievers, and kidney disease.

How not, celery leaves contain various kinds of substances and vitamins needed by the body. Some of them are antioxidants, vitamin C, iron, to folic acid.

Not only that, the nutritional value in celery leaves is also beneficial for maintaining kidney health. Here are some of the benefits you can find in celery for your kidneys.

1. Optimizing kidney function

Celery leaves have been known for a long time as a source of antioxidants that are easily available. Antioxidants are compounds that are needed to protect the body from the effects of free radicals. In fact, this substance is also believed to help prevent kidney disease.

This statement is proven through research from The New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers from the University of Alabama are trying to see how antioxidants affect the kidneys.

This study was followed by 227 adults with chronic kidney disease. They were then asked to receive placebo (empty drug) and methyl bardoxolone methyl at the prescribed dose for 24-52 weeks.

As a result, giving bardoxolone methyl which contains antioxidants increases kidney function by as much as 30%. Even so, experts still want to investigate whether this could be a method of treating chronic kidney disease.

Therefore, it is believed that the antioxidant content in celery can be used to improve kidney performance.

2. Helps control blood pressure

Not only improves kidney function, but other benefits of celery leaves are to help control blood pressure which is certainly good for kidney health.

You see, hypertension and kidney disease are very closely related. Hypertension occurs when the blood pressure in the blood vessels exceeds normal limits. This condition can be caused by various factors, especially blockages in blood vessels.

If the blood pressure is too high, the blood vessels in the kidneys can be damaged. As a result, this bean-shaped organ may not work optimally, resulting in difficulty making waste and excess fluids from the body.

The content of phytochemical extracts (phtalide) in celery can help relax artery wall tissue. That way, blood flow becomes smoother and reduces your blood pressure.

In addition, maintaining kidney health also needs to be accompanied by a good diet including a kidney failure diet, such as limiting foods high in potassium. You can occasionally replace vegetables high in potassium, such as broccoli and spinach, with celery leaves.

The salt content in celery stalks is low, so you can consume it when you want to go on a low potassium and salt diet.

3. Contains flavonoids which are good for the kidneys

Another content found in celery leaves is flavonoids, which are substances that are often found in vegetables, including celery.

The benefits of the flavonoids in celery for the kidneys are that they help improve overall kidney function. These findings have been reviewed in research from Frontiers in Physiology.

The study showed that flavonoids help protect the kidneys from various nephrotoxic agents. These agents are known as compounds that can trigger chronic kidney failure and acute kidney injury due to alcohol, nicotine, and cadmium.

This compound, which can also be found in apples and soursop, is also effective in preventing kidney disease caused by hypertension. The reason is, flavonoids can help lower blood pressure and react to the renal parenchyma, which is the tissue that makes up the kidneys.

This is what makes celery leaves believed to have good benefits for your kidneys.

Tips for processing celery

In order for you to get the maximum benefits of celery leaves for the kidneys, you can follow the tips below.

• Cut the celery and stalks and add them to the soup.
• Use celery leaves when cooking scrambled tofu.
• Consume it with almonds, peanuts, or peanut butter sprinkled with raisins.
• Celery juice.

Although celery leaves are good for kidney health, that doesn't mean you have to eat large amounts of it. Eating too much celery increases the risk of hyperkalemia because there is too much potassium in the body.

If you are in doubt, ask your doctor if celery is safe to eat. That way, the risk of kidney disease is reduced and the body becomes healthier.