Sodium Bicarbonate?

[Charlie B53]

Ran across this posting on the Facebook PD Support Group.   I have to wonder if any of it really is beneficial?   I find it difficult to believe the recipe calls for the addition of common salt!   I thought salt to be a huge NO NO for most all of us as at least for me, it tends to cause me to hold water for days until I lose the salt.

https://www.davidwolfe.com/12-teaspoon-baking-soda-daily-kidneys/
Eat 1/2 Teaspoon of Baking Soda Daily and THIS Happens to Your Kidneys!



I noticed no where did the articile say what 'This' is!

I don't think I will try it.  At least not unless my Neph tells me I should and he spells out just how much, of what, and how often.   I'm screwed up enough already.  I don't need to add anything else to my problems.

[sahern]

I take it in a pill form every couple days to help keep my internal chemistry in line.  Since starting PD I do not have to take as much. Before dialysis I took 4 or 5 pills two times a day and still had trouble keeping my numbers in the right range.

[MooseMom]

Regular salt is sodium chloride whereas sodium bicarbonate is, well, sodium bicarbonate.  The two are not the same.

[SooMK]

My neph put me on sodium bicarbonate tablets as my kidney function worsened. I've read articles where supposedly this helped immensely. My own (completely made up) explanation is that it depends on the cause of your kidney disease whether it helps much or not. Perhaps it's very helpful for some people and not others. It didn't seem to slow my kidney disease down.

[MooseMom]

My neph put me on sodium bicarbonate tablets as my kidney function worsened. I've read articles where supposedly this helped immensely. My own (completely made up) explanation is that it depends on the cause of your kidney disease whether it helps much or not. Perhaps it's very helpful for some people and not others. It didn't seem to slow my kidney disease down.

I seem to remember having this conversation before!

I was put on sodium bicarb tablets once my potassium levels could not be lowered by diet alone.  I took them for 3 or 4 years, upping the quantity as my K levels increased.  By the time I was transplanted (I was lucky in that I had a preemptive tx), I was taking 12 a day.  This strategy DID control my K (barely).

The bottom line is that sodium bicarbonate doesn't slow down kidney disease, rather, it protects the body from the EFFECTS (high K) of kidney disease.

[Charlie B53]

But I have to takek potassium supplements, eat LOTS of tomatoes and told to eat more.  So if sodium bicarb helps reduce potassium it may NOT be recommended for me.    It's stuff like this that could get me into BIG trouble if I tried willy nilly much of the things posted on the web without first asking a few questions in the right places.

I sent a link to the article to my PD Nurse asking if the Dr is aware of this.  It was late in the week so I wasn't surprised not to get an answer yet.

Either way, I don't even use any type of antiacid.  Fortunately I never have felt the need.  (Knock on wood).

[Athena]

Regular salt is sodium chloride whereas sodium bicarbonate is, well, sodium bicarbonate.  The two are not the same.

Bless you for this clarification MM. It wasn't exactly spelt out to me by the Neph but that's what I think he was trying to say. Stay away from the regular dietary salt but take the sodium bicarb tablets!

[kickingandscreaming]

Does anyone know how many of the sodium bicarb tablets (625mg) is equivalent to a teaspoon of the powder?  I need to start taking it again, and all I have are the tablets and it's hard to find out the equivalence.

[cassandra]

I have capsules of 500 mg, but also have a bucket of the stuff as I started cleaning with less harsh chemicals.
A heaped teaspoon is 4 grams, so 4000 mg

[kickingandscreaming]

Thanks, Cas.  So with my size tablets (650mg) that would be approx. 6 tablets to a teaspoon.  AmIright?

[cassandra]

Yup you're right. Have you tried it?   

[kickingandscreaming]

Yes.  I tried it yesterday.  What I read suggested  thoroughly dissolving the tablets.  So I put the 6 tablets in a sufficient amount of water, then added the juice of a 1/2 lemon and some stevia.  It got bubbly and was quite nice.  That's how I used to serve it when I used the powder. Otherwise it tastes like yuk.

[Fabkiwi06]

I've read about taking it as a supplement on my crunch hippy blogs, but I'm still confused. What exactly is it supposed to do? Just lower potassium or are there additional benefits? I'm always looking for anything that can help my depleted system run better, and bonus points if it's a naturalish substance. I'm trying to see if this is one I'd benefit from - my potassium is on the lower end, but still normal so I don't need to lower it.

[Maggie and Jeff]

Makes the body more alkaline.

Less acidic

Less likely to develop cancer and many other issues with a more base PH.

Just my 2 cents   

[cassandra]

Also less cramps

[Charlie B53]

Fabwiki and I have the same question.  We both have sufficiently low potassium and do NOT need to reduce it any further.

Reducing cramps, like the terrible leg cramps I get from too much activity some days, woiuld be great.

BUT, a further reduction in my potassium would not be so good.

What are the 'Cons' of using bicarb ?

Are there other 'Pro's' to using bicarb?

[Athena]

Makes the body more alkaline.

Less acidic

Less likely to develop cancer and many other issues with a more base PH.

Just my 2 cents

That is correct. Sodium bicarbonate supplementation combats excess acidity that then leads to metabolic acidosis that many kidney disease sufferers develop.

[kickingandscreaming]

You should only be taking bicarb IF your nephrologist prescribes it.  Not just casually. I used to take it (was prescribed) before I started D.  Now, my bicarb levels are somewhat low and I am taking it again.  For acid/alkaline.

[Charlie B53]

You should only be taking bicarb IF your nephrologist prescribes it.

This is more like I am thinking.

All I kknow about bicarb is to keep a box in the refrigerator, and only use exactly what a recipe calls for.

I'm a 'Guy', I know wrenches and steel. Well, I know a little more than that.  I seriously studied photons.  But that doesn't make the house payment too well.

[Athena]

You should only be taking bicarb IF your nephrologist prescribes it.  Not just casually. I used to take it (was prescribed) before I started D.  Now, my bicarb levels are somewhat low and I am taking it again.  For acid/alkaline.

That goes without saying and ditto that.

Bicarb should only be taken if a Neph or doctor prescribes it. They only prescribe it once someone's serum bicarbonate levels falls below normal healthy levels. If one's serum bicarbonate levels are within the normal range, then bicarb supplementation will then lead to another electrolyte imbalance of metabolic alkalosis (?) which can be life-threatening.

I take bicarb capsules that my Neph has prescribed that control the amount of bicarb that I consume and this, like any other medication, needs to be monitored and adjusted by your doctor through lab results.

What I would give to go back to never even needing to know what bicarb levels are much less have to take these capsules with each meal!

[kickingandscreaming]

Athena-  Are you sure you should be taking them with each meal?  Reason I ask, is that when it's taken WITH meals, it is neutralizing stomach acids and not blood serum acid.   I was told to take it once daily and apart from meals.





sp mod Cas

[Athena]

K&S, thank you. When I was hospitalised 2 years ago with an AKI, they gave me a sodium bicarb capsule with each meal, 3 times a day. They told me that it must only be taken with meals (the hospital nursing staff).

My Neph has told me to take 3 capsules a day and I have just naturally assumed that it must be with meals as well. He has said that it can also be taken on an empty stomach as well

I have also read material about it neutralising the stomach acids, which has worried me. It doesn't make much sense to me and commonsense would dictate that it should therefore be taken on an empty stomach.

I'm really confused. So far I am not noticing any ill effects from taking it with meals.

[Fabkiwi06]

It's certainly something worth talking to my neph about. Bloodwork wise, I'm great right now but the idea of having something that can help with cramps when I have those days is really enticing. I love me some modern medicine, but it's also really nice to find potential solutions that are a little more natural and easier on the overall system, especially for something that I'm willing to suck it up and deal with anyway.