What is in my food?: Not being able to access... - Kidney Disease

Kidney Disease

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What is in my food?

lakeheadguy profile image
13 Replies

Not being able to access a renal dietician; I have looked at my lab results and determined the culprits in my food (namely protein). I am recording my food intake and health symptoms in a daily journal to determine what to eat. Not all foods have nutrition labels and not CKD culprits are listed (phosphorus etc.).

Davita has a food analyzer davita.com/diet-nutrition/f...

myhealthkidney has a CKD culprits calculator

myhealthykidney.com/

The Davita Kidney Smart free course includes a Lab Tracker Sheet. Had to modify for Canadian Measurements. All CKD indicators in one place; easy to analyze.

By monitoring my lab results and analyzing my food journal I hope to determine what to eat and how much.

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lakeheadguy profile image
lakeheadguy
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13 Replies
orangecity41 profile image
orangecity41NKF Ambassador

Good you are being proactive for your CKD. What level were you diagnosed at?

lakeheadguy profile image
lakeheadguy in reply to orangecity41

Not diagnosed until ACR 3.0 but ACR 2.

WYOAnne profile image
WYOAnneNKF Ambassador in reply to lakeheadguy

Please remember that a diagnosis is not made from an annual lab results, but rather from a trend over time. It is also from a combination of blood and urine test results over many months. Bad lab results one time can be caused from many things - like dehydration, a protein rich meal, strenuous exercise, lab error, etc. Be sure you have a diagnosis before proceeding with a change in diet. Once your doctor tells you that you have CKD, get the diet OK'd.

lakeheadguy profile image
lakeheadguy in reply to orangecity41

ACR 2.7 Urine CR 2.2 Albumin urine 6 eFGR 51 Looks like Stage 3 A to me based on labs

orangecity41 profile image
orangecity41NKF Ambassador in reply to lakeheadguy

Here is a link to eGFR information from National Kidney Foundation that you might find useful. kidney.org/atoz/content/gfr

orangecity41 profile image
orangecity41NKF Ambassador in reply to lakeheadguy

Before you get on any diet, check with your Primary Doctor to make sure you are on correct diet for you.

Skeptix profile image
Skeptix

1. Cronometer is a very useful app - it has a comprehensive database and it's free. There's useful features that come with a cheap subscription - logging say protein intake over 2 months which is a useful trend to have. It's the longer trend that matters rather than daily fluctuations.

2. As you say, nutritional labels won't contain stuff on phosphorus and the like. But what would you be eating prepared foods for anyway! :) . If you make your own stuff from fresh ingredients and you'll track all the nutrients. Or you can make your own receipes for shop bought things and so log all nutrients. For example: I have a shop bought coleslaw, but I've made a coleslaw receipe faithfully using the shop bought's ingredients and so I now can log all nutrients, even though shop bought

3. You might do well to get some kind of steer from a dietician, even if only initially. I was, for example, too tight on salt and was told to up it and bit and why. You can get online renal dieticians (e.g. kidneyRD.com).

I'd say the first thing to do is to figure what the big hitters are and find ways of nailing a diet that works for you and one which doesnt' see you fall off a nutritional cliff.

As always, I'd point folk to Lee Hull's Stopping Kidney Disease as a good starting point for going into battle. You get to understand the scale of the fronts on which you need to fight and get a dietary steer in the process.

How's your urea?

Michael__S profile image
Michael__S

I also live in Canada and I am at stage 3A. It took me around 8 months to speak with a nephrologist and just got referred to a renal dietician. Prior to that I was able to be referred to a registered dietician and it was extremely helpful. The delay was also quite short.

Have a look here unlockfood.ca/en/Articles/A... and here members.dietitians.ca/DCMem....

PopcornLover1971 profile image
PopcornLover1971 in reply to Michael__S

That's awesome. I am in Alberta - cannot get to a renal dietician. Where are you?

lakeheadguy profile image
lakeheadguy in reply to PopcornLover1971

Thunder Bay ON

Michael__S profile image
Michael__S in reply to PopcornLover1971

I currently live in BC. The nephrologist referred me to one.

PopcornLover1971 profile image
PopcornLover1971 in reply to Michael__S

We have to be stage 4, I think, to see a nephro in Alberta

Michael__S profile image
Michael__S in reply to PopcornLover1971

I don't know what the exact criteria are but it may have been only possible because I was still not feeling well after the pyeloplasty. I should have a nephrectomy by the end of year.

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