*Neon yellow urine is nothing to brag about. Kidney specialists say a glowing shade usually means the body is dumping an excess of vitamins or food compounds.
The topic surfaced this summer through a doctor who counsels several members of President Trump’s cabinet on nutrition. He compared his urine to Mountain Dew and gave the credit to an all-meat, fermented-food diet. The Guardian asked two nephrologists about it.
“If you get super fluorescent or super red, you’re eating too much of something or taking too many supplements,” said Sharon Moe of Indiana University School of Medicine.
Moe was just as direct about the eating plan behind the claim. “The carnivore diet is not a healthy diet,” she said.
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Her formula for kidney health is simpler. Keep blood pressure in check, load up on produce and go easy on meat. That matters because kidney disease tends to hide. Of the 37 million American adults with a chronic case, nine in 10 have no idea.
Certain changes should send a person to a clinician. Red or brown urine that persists is one. So are cloudy urine, an odor that turns sweet or foul, and a big swing in how often a person goes. A color change paired with fresh pain, a rash or badly swollen legs also needs a look.
Heavy foam is another flag because it may mean the kidneys are letting protein escape. A stray bubble or two is normal. Moe said the concern is anything “like a beer head in the toilet.”
Otherwise, an odd color seldom signals a crisis in a healthy person. Moe recommends pausing supplements as a first step. If nothing changes, colorful foods are next to go. People on a new prescription should check with a clinician and keep taking it in the meantime.
Beets can tint urine pink, rhubarb can push it toward reddish-brown and B vitamins can make it glow yellow. Kidneys in good shape pass along whatever the body has no need for.
“Your kidneys are really smart,” Moe said.
Ordinary urine is yellow because gut bacteria make a pigment called urobilin. More fluid means a paler shade. Suzanne Watnick, a nephrologist at the University of Washington, cautioned against leaning on color charts.
“They are considered imprecise,” she said. Thirst is the more reliable cue for most people.
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