Phosphorus is a mineral found in your bones. Along with calcium, phosphorus is needed to build strong healthy bones, as well as, keeping other parts of your body healthy. In our foods we can find phosphorus naturally in certain foods or added to processed food as an additive.
People with CKD tend to accumulate phosphorus in their blood. Elevated phosphorus levels have been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Excess phosphorus can bind with phosphorus in your blood and create calcium deposit in your blood vessels. This vascular calcification adds to arterial stiffness and cardiovascular events.
High phosphorus can also weaken your bones overtime. This happens when abnormal phosphorus levels can affect the secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH) and fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23).
Strategies to reduce your phosphorus intake:
Read your food labels and avoid those 4 letters “PHOS” in the ingredient foods that you eat. Phosphorus additives, such as phosphoric acid and sodium phosphate, are commonly found in processed foods and beverages and should be minimized.
Phosphorus binders are a class of medications that can be prescribed to bind phosphorus in your GI tract to reduce how much phosphorus you will absorb.