I’m happy to report another plus for fish! If you are an adult and you have diabetes, you may help reduce your risk of kidney disease if you eat fish at least twice a week, according to a British study published in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases. And since your kidneys help detoxify your blood and cleanse your system, one of the worst health problems associated with diabetes is the increased chance of kidney disease.

The British study, lead by researcher Chee-Tin Christine Lee, involved more than 22,000 adults who were middle-aged or older. Out of that number, 517 had diabetes—with the majority of those having Type 2 diabetes.

By using food and lifestyle questionnaires, the research team found that study participants with diabetes who said they ate fish two or more times a week were much less likely to have protein (albumin) in their urine.

And one of the earliest warning indicators of kidney disease is protein in the urine, a condition known as macroalbuminuria. The presence of macroalbuminuria in the diabetic subjects was 8.3 percent, but less than 1 percent in the non-diabetics.

Of those with diabetes, 18 percent of those who didn’t regularly include fish in their diet—less than one time each week—had macroalbuminuria, but only 4 percent of those who ate fish twice or more a week had the condition.

“This suggests, then, that eating fish may prevent this early sign of kidney problems, which patients with diabetes are more likely to develop,” said study co-author Amanda Adler, M.D., of Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, England.

“It is possible that fish oil improves blood lipid profiles and decreases the risk of kidney disease,” Lee said in a Reuter’s Health report. “It could be other components of fish, such as protein or micronutrients, are protective against diabetic kidney disease. However, it is also possible that people who eat fish frequently have other lifestyle factors, which we could not account for.”