Can Blueberries Be Bad for Your Kidneys?

If you're a fan of the little burst of flavor provided by blueberries, the good news is that they are not bad for your kidneys. Even if you have advanced kidney disease, blueberries are one of the few fruits that you can eat freely. The sugar and whipped cream that often accompany blueberries are more realistic dietary concerns.
Blueberry Nutrients
A 1-cup serving blueberries contains a few significant nutrients, the most abundant of which is vitamin K, or the clotting vitamin, with over 30 percent of your recommended daily intake. The only other substantial vitamin in blueberries is vitamin C, with roughly 20 percent of the recommended 75 milligram intake for women, and 15 percent of the recommended 90 milligram intake for men. The same serving delivers more than 20 percent of your recommended intake for manganese and 14 percent of your recommended intake of fiber.
Antioxidant Properties
The US Department of Agriculture measures the oxygen radical absorbance capacity of many foods. ORAC is a measure of the anti-oxidant capability of a food. While blueberries may be relatively low in nutrients, they are very high in anti-oxidants, with 6,520 micrograms of anti-oxidant compounds in a 100-gram serving. By way of comparison, cooked broccoli has only 1,552 micrograms in a 100-gram serving. Anti-oxidant-rich foods don't harm your kidneys. Rather, they help prevent cancer and other chronic diseases.
Low In Potassium
Those with advanced kidney disease often have to watch their potassium intake. While healthy kidneys keep potassium levels between 3.5 and 5.0 milliequivalent per liter, diseased kidneys are unable to do this. Potassium levels start to rise to dangerous levels, putting the patient at risk of irregular heartbeat and even heart attack. Although many fruits become off-limits for these patients, a 1-cup serving of blueberries has only 114 milligrams of potassium. To put this in perspective, the National Kidney Foundation classifies foods with more than 200 milligrams of potassium as a good source of potassium. According to kidney foundation guidelines, blueberries are a low-potassium food.

Low In Phosphorus
Those with advanced kidney disease often have to avoid high-phosphorus foods. With only 17.8 milligrams of phosphorus, a 1-cup serving of berries fits tidily within the 800- to 1,000-milligram limit recommended by the kidney foundation. Being able to eat healthy foods like blueberries is a relief for kidney patients, because they often have to follow very restrictive diets, especially with regard to fruits and vegetables.