Just Diag. w/ Stage 3a ckd and huge weight loss worry

[FlowerPreciousLover]

Thank you for making this site available! 12 lb unexplained wt loss lead to ultra sound diag. Shocked at 1st visit to neph. with diag. Immediate changes to renal friendly diet; 2nd neph. visit revealed improved GFR and creatinine levels. 1st concern was 3 more lbs lost in one month...15 lb loss since Jan. Asked for dietician referral; doesn't think lab markers "indicate the need"; ask for supplements, meds to incr appetite; told to incr. protein,carb, fats...I don't know where or how to find help? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Refused Reclast inf. bec. of stage 3 diag. so 2nd big concern is bones; no replacement idea from neph. on that. Don't think ins. will pay for dietician if not dr referral. So happy to have found this site.

[orangecity41 NKF Ambassador]

I was diagnosed at CKD 3b, 3+ years ago. I am age 78, male. The progression of the disease has slowed down. After put on renal diet, I started losing weight, 25 lbs total. I am on Original Medicare and unable to get referral to a renal dietitian until reach CKD 4, and a regular dietitian but once a year. There are many sources for information and assistance with your renal diet. I utilize Davita diet helper which has recipes and a tool for planning and tracking. Others might use another source. I also attended Davita class, along with my wife, on Kidney Disease , which is a big help. You have come to a good forum for support and information.

[FlowerPreciousLover in reply to orangecity41]

Took awhile to find your responses and feared that my question my not get posted because the profile said my zip code # didn’t match USA? Same one I’ve had forever…lol

I am particularly encouraged that you have maintained and slowed down the progression. Wonderful news! Neph. has done nothing more than to tell me to “eat more”, stop NSAIDS & reduce vit c from 1,000 to 500. At 76 yrs, maybe my ins won’t cover dietician but neph offered no expl. for her refusal. I would be willing to pay out-of-pocket if could find a renal one. Thx for the Davita diet helper tip; saw it but haven’t signed up yet.

[Jayhawker]

I'd ask the nephrologist to explain my labs to me in detail. Then I'd clarify whether my labs indicate a need for any dietary restrictions or not. Once I have the answers to these questions I'd go to the Davita web site. There are numerous renal-friends recipes on that web site. The dietitians who post those recipes also give suggestions regarding how to modify the recipe for those with diabetes, those on dialysis, those not yet on dialysis, those who are having trouble sustaining their weight, those who need to loose weight, etc.

If you've got no specific restrictions, for instance low potassium, then you'll just need to head what most would consider to be a heart healthy diet, i.e., low sodium, low fat, lots of veggies and fruits, boneless skinless chicken breasts and fish, etc. And, you'll need to each foods to keep your weight up. They often encourage adding heart healthy fats, e.g., olive oil, to your diet to add calories if you're having trouble sustaining weight. (I have just the opposite issue, unfortunately.)

But this begins by know what your specific renal panel data is. Your nephrologist should provide clear direction regarding that issue.

Jayhawker

[FlowerPreciousLover in reply to Jayhawker]

I’d typed a list of questions and 1st was improved weight. Neph went straight to lab reports and did a good job of going over them with me. Also took online course from renaldiethq.com on “understanding lab reports” before doc visit which helped me. Yes, the DaVita site has proved so helpful and I trust the dietician approved tips and info.

[Bassetmommer NKF Ambassador]

Hi Flower,

Is the weight lose a bad thing for you? 15 pounds since January is not that much actually, but then I am a large woman. I think many of us lost weight when we went to a renal diet. I lost almost 40 pounds. Then, at least in my case, I plateaued out. The change for me was great. The improvement in my kidney function was minimal, but I am stage four. But my other blood levels all improved. See if there is something more caloric you can add to your diet. The improvement in your GFR is wonderful. I am not sure why you are worried about your bones unless your calcium levels and PTH are off. I know they don't refer to dieticians at stage three often, but if they did, they would save a lot of people from dialysis. See if you can push for the referral. Davita is a good resource. Google kidney diet and you will find a lot of resources out there. Ask any questions you may have.

[FlowerPreciousLover in reply to Bassetmommer]

I am thankful for and reassured by each of your responses.

Yes, Bassetmommer, the nausea, weight loss and fatigue is what started this journey because I’ve maintained a stable weight for years. 5’7 & bet. 125-130 range. The ultra sound is what brought me to nephrologist.

Because of advancing osteoporosis, I’ve qualified for Reclast infusions for past 4 yrs. Now denied bec. of stage 3, and troubled that neph. did not help with med or supplement replacements.

Will go back over my lab rept and pay attn to those elements that were on the higher ranges. Also printed out a list of 21 high caloric foods and will be mixing some in from generic renal diet suggestions on the net. Happy with improved results and happier still to have found this group! Best to all.

[Bassetmommer NKF Ambassador in reply to FlowerPreciousLover]

Hi Flower,

I am not a dietician, but I have a question for you. Is there a reason at stage 3b you are limiting your dairy? Do you have high phosphorous? With your advanced osteoporosis, I would think you would want to include it in your diet.

I know you want to see a dietician, and I highly recommend you do to make a diet pan that works for all your conditions. You may be surprised that you can add in something your not doing now that might help your calories. Dairy is often high in calories.

I do eat cheese. I do not drink milk or eat yogurt. I tally my intake on Davita.com so I know how much sodium I am consuming. I don't eat much that has high sodium so I can have cheese. I eat lo fat butter, not margarine, and use cream cheese in sandwiches and as a spread on veggies.

I also eat broccoli and greens that also have calcium. But my diet works for me, may not for you. But here is some information on calcium rich foods.

iofbonehealth.org/osteoporo...

[Jayhawker]

I’m wondering if your primary care physician may be able to refer you to a dietician. My PCP did that a few years ago. If so, perhaps the dietician can be one with expertise in renal diets??? If not, perhaps you could contact a renal dietician in your area and inquire about the possibility of referring yourself or setting an appointment on your own.

As others have said, earlier help from renal dieticians would save s lot of people from dialysis. Even fir me, I’ve seen some decent improvement in my renal panel since converting to a vegetarian diet. And I’ve been in Stage V since early January of 2017!

However, I shifted to a vegetarian diet this past July. I just got my second renal panel data since the shift.

My creatinine has improved from 4.0 to 2.9 with a corresponding eGFR improvement from 11 to 16. My BUN has improved from 73 to 47. Other data is all in the normal range. So at least for that moment in time my renal function was no longer in renal failure; instead I was in low Stage IV. There have three other renal panels in low Stage IV over the past 6 months. But this one has better BUN data and all other data in the normal range. Each time my data had been better I’ve minimized my intake of meat-based protein.

Consequently I’m commuting to a vegetarian diet full time now, with the approval of my nephrologist.

Diet is critical; well worth paying for the appointment out of pocket if needed in my opinion.

Jayhawker

[Zazzel]

You can try adding flax oil or ground flax seeds to salads, smoothies etc. it’s loaded with Omega 3 which help inflamation. It is also high in calories and good fat. Here is also an article about it possibly helping with osteoporosis. Https://sciencedaily.com/releases/2...