Reversing Chronic Kidney Disease with a Plant-Based Diet

Yvonne Schneider shares the incredible story of how she's reversing chronic kidney disease, curing gout, and lowering her blood pressure in a short time just by changing her diet.

In 2010, I was tired all the time. I went to the doctor and was placed on a high blood pressure medication because I "was becoming older," as told by the physician's assistant. I was only 55, and I didn’t understand what he was talking about. I considered myself pretty healthy. I didn’t eat red meat; I ate lots of chicken, turkey, shellfish, and fish, along with some veggies and fruit (though not much). The news was a blow, and this was my first prescription medication. 

Three years later, I found that I had difficulty working six days a week to run my used bookstore due to fatigue. At a doctor's appointment, another physician’s assistant told me that my chronic kidney disease was getting worse. This was the first I’d heard that I had CKD. I told her to have the physician call me. I found out that my high blood pressure was a sign of kidney disease, but no one had told me before. Then I was diagnosed with gout. 

A friend and I decided to do research ourselves, embarking on a huge fact-finding journey. We found accounts online from people who had healed from different ailments by changing their lifestyles. Our research eventually led me to eliminate excess sugar, excess fat, and sodium nitrates, and to reduce my consumption of shellfish. Although I ate plenty of whole plant foods, I still ate meat such as turkey burgers and chicken.

I’d known that going plant-based would be best for my health. I’d just always been afraid to go all in because I didn’t know what I would eat. But I finally decided to take the plunge on April 11, 2018—my birthday. 

At a doctor’s appointment three weeks after I’d gone plant-based, my GFR (glomerular filtration rate, a marker of CKD) levels were greatly improved, and the doctor took me off my gout medication! Within six months the arthritis in my hands was gone, and I had more energy than I’d had in a while. 

Since going plant-based I have changed in so many ways. I have lost 20 pounds, reversed my chronic kidney disease, eliminated my gout, lowered my high blood pressure, reduced my arthritis inflammation, improved my eyesight, and completely changed my lifestyle. 

My favorite things to eat now are sweet potato enchiladas and veggie pizza. I make Forks Over Knives recipes all the time. I drink a lot of herbal teas. 

There have been challenges, and I have faced some concern and skepticism from people who don’t agree with eating plant-based. America is getting sicker, but many people aren’t willing to hear the solutions. Admittedly, I get a little over-zealous sometimes, because I’m so excited to tell others of my health improvements. 

Currently, I am helping my husband to adopt a more plant-based diet, as well as my daughter and her three sons. I became certified in nutrition and wellness and started a business teaching others how to change their lives. I'm not giving up! 

Ready to get started? Check out our Plant-Based Primer to learn more about adopting a whole-food, plant-based diet.