Estimation of the renal net acid excretion by adults consuming diets containing variable amounts of protein

The object of this study was to determine whether it is possible to reliably estimate the renal net acid excretion (NAE) produced by adults consuming different amounts of dietary protein. A physiologically based calculation model that corrects for intestinal absorption of minerals and sulfur-containing protein and assumes a rate of urinary excretion of organic acids proportional to body surface area was used to estimate NAE. Urinary excretion of different minerals and NAE was measured during the last 48 h of each of four separate 5-d diet periods in six healthy adults. On the basis of food tables, the four nearly isoenergetic diets (one lacto-vegetarian and one high- and two moderate-protein diets) were estimated to yield the following NAE values: 3.7, 117.5, 62.2, and 102.2 mEq/d, respectively. The analytically determined urinary NAE (24.1 +/- 10.7, 135.5 +/- 16.4, 69.7 +/- 21.4, and 112.6 +/- 10.9 mEq/d) corresponded reasonably well to these estimates, suggesting that the calculation model is appropriate to predict the renal NAE from nutrient intake and anthropometric data.