The influence of the diet on the progression of renal insufficiency.

Although dietary protein restriction will protect the residual renal function of rats with chronic renal failure (CRF), the mechanism for this beneficial effect is unknown. Since methods for measuring the progression of renal insufficiency in individual patients have become available, a similar protective effect of dietary manipulation has been sought in patients with CRF. Available evidence indicates that dietary manipulation can substantially slow the loss of renal function at early and late stages of CRF.