Food when on PD Dialysis

[horsie63]

I haven't really seen this but what all do you eat? I'm not yet there and at 17% I'm mostly eating plants. So if I was on PD can I eat what I like while sticking to healthy food but what about high potassium foods like potatoes, tomatoes, cantaloupe, bananas and the like? Since I am taking meds for high blood pressure which is under control I plan on sticking to a low sodium diet but what else?

[Erifre]

Hi, my husband was around 14% for almost 4 years, now he has been on dialysis for 2 years. The most important thing to do is to control your potassium levels (that was a challenge) animal proteins will make it go high. Try to add to your meals celery, lettuce, peppers, carrots, onions, use salt free condiments, pepper, and tons of herbs and spices. Avoid high potassium veggies like spinach, tomatoes, potatoes, asparagus or fruits like mangoes, cantaloupe, bananas, avocado. Try making soups using veggie stock instead of using chicken or beef. Make veggie wraps using lettuce leaves. Stay away from nuts, lentils, beans, and whole grains (those are high in potassium), look for unenriched white rice, that will help you cook with tons of veggies to avoid eating always the same foods. The worst thing you can do is use canned food, it has tons of sodium and potassium. When we started the kidney-friendly diet we were completely lost. I feel you, but the more you research, the more you will find that you can do it!, stay strong. This is an extract of what helped me keep my husband healthy before starting dialysis. Now, he has a different diet and his potassium is still in a range of 4.4 which is great for any kidney patient. I know it’s a lot of info, but if you need help, I’m more than happy to help. Our renal dietician gave me tons of tricks to avoid getting bored with the diet.

[Porter20 in reply to Erifre]

I was fortunate they told me to eat anything I wanted but whole grains. Stick to white breads processed high fat foods keep sugar under 150.

[rabbit01]

Everyone is different bit in my case my potassium is fine actually on the low side so I can have bananas and tomatoes and orange juice. However my phosphate is very high so I have to restrict foods that are high in phosphate. I am on PD with a residual 5% egfr.

[Hidden]

Horsie, when I was at your stage, I was eating a lot of vegetables and rice or pasta and very low protein. I mainly ate two meals a day with one meal being one or two eggs and a slice of sourdough toast. I had been using an online program called Cronometer to record my meals and this helped me to gauge what nutrients I was receiving and what I needed to aim for in meal preparation. I drank a lot of water and limited coffee to two 8oz cups a day. If I had a snack, it was usually a 100mL of yogurt. As I approached the end, I was struggling to consume 600 to 700 calories a day. I was very lethargic and rested a lot. I really had no appetite. My dietition monitors my bloodwork and advises accordingly. Once you go on dialysis protein consumption becomes important. Monitoring potassium and phosphorus are still important. For example, phosphorus gets used a lot to extend the shelf life of products. So you nwed to read food labels. Although I use minimum prepackaged foods I find phosphorus to be used in drinks, like iced teas and cold brew coffees. So, I make my own now. I do not use table salt but I do add some while cooking. I use a wide variety of herbs and spices. My appetite for things like sweets has changed. I don't really enjoy them any more or have them all that often.

[judan499 in reply to Hidden]

I have the same exact issues my phosphorus leval is at 6 not good been trying to regulate my blood pressure which is difficult to do with PKD I am doing what you are its a challenge. Hopefully a transplant soon I have a donor

[Hidden in reply to judan499]

Judan, I have PKD as well! Awesome that you have a donor! Best wishes with your transplant.

[Darlenia]

My hubby has been on both hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. HD doesn't remove potassium very well for people on that so it builds up for them; PD doesn't remove phosphorus very well for many on that so phosphorus becomes an issue there. There are binders available for when either high potassium or phosphorus levels become unmanageable through diet alone. With kidney collapse, most everyone also has low iron levels, no matter the form of dialysis, so most will eventually receive injections to take care of that issue no matter what you eat. In both forms of dialysis, my husband was encouraged to put proteins back in his diet as dialysis removes those. Interesting, one's diet generally improves under both forms of dialysis. You will get monthly labs which will tell you and your dietician exactly what areas you will need to address.

[horsie63]

Thanks Darlenia. I currently do the low protein, low sodium, low potassium mostly plant based with a little bit of chicken here and there. My phosphorus has been fine as I quit drinking Coke years ago along with dairy products. I rarely eat any chocolate and I have a list of low potassium foods I can eat. Onions make me gag and I don't like peppers or spicy food so that helps me.

[Darlenia]

You're following the renal diet which is very important at this point. On dialysis, your diet profile will very likely change. The dietician at the center will work closely with you.

[KidneyCoach NKF Ambassador]

Generally most people on dialysis are restricted to around 1-2000 mgs sodium, 1-2000 mgs potassium and 1000 mgs phosphorus daily. Protein intake is greatly increased from a pre-dialysis diet as dialysis process removes protein. This limits will vary from person to person depending on how bodies respond to dialysis, Renal failure etc. Nothing is forbidden except starfruit. Limits are key depending on labs and dialysis types.

Those doing nocturnal hemodialysis vs. those in-center the restrictions are like night and day. Kidneys work 24/7, 168 hours per week. Replacing that with say 9-12 hours of dialysis per week is bare minimum. Nocturnal can replace between 24 to 48 hours per week, 2-4X more than in-center. PD on cycler will be is 70-84 hours treatment time. As you see restrictions will vary greatly. Lab results will help determine how and what to adjust and medications necessary. It's all about being proactive in your own health care.

Blessings

[horsie63]

Ah I’d not seen the hours breakdown and assumed dialysis was like having functional kidneys again.

[Blackmidnight]

I eat alot of lettuce (all kinds). No bread, limited amounts of potatoes, tomatoes and now cucumbers because they are making me burp. Lots of scrambled eggs. Cantaloupe, watermelon, pineapple. I find that the pineapple helps with my joint pain. Trying to eat more chicken and fish.