Starting a low-carb diet is easy. You simply announce, “I’m cutting way back on carbs,” and immediately feel healthier because you have successfully completed the first five minutes. The real challenge comes when the bread, potatoes, pasta, cookies and other members of the Carb Family start whispering your name from the kitchen. For the first few days, you feel determined and heroic, carefully choosing eggs instead of toast and vegetables instead of fries. Then somebody brings home a pizza, and suddenly your commitment to better nutrition is being tested by a circle of melted cheese and pepperoni.
A low-carb diet doesn’t automatically mean my kidneys are going to file a formal complaint, but they may notice the change—especially if “low carb” turns into “nothing but bacon and steak.” For most healthy people, a sensible lower-carb diet with plenty of vegetables, adequate fluids, and reasonable amounts of protein isn’t generally considered harmful to the kidneys. The bigger concern is for people who already have kidney disease (me), kidney stones (me), or reduced kidney function (me), where high protein intake or dehydration can be a problem. So I’m thinking moderation is the name of the game: fewer carbs, not fewer vegetables, and definitely enough water to keep the kidneys from wondering why I suddenly joined a survivalist compound.