The Renal Diet...

I spoke to the nutritionist and everything I thought I was doing healthy for me....was wrong! I can no longer have whole grain foods or wheat. I can't eat bananas, spinach, and other "healthy" foods.

What kind of diet is this you ask?? It is a the renal diet and it is confusing as heck. It is basically a low sodium, low potassium, low phosphorus, and low protein diet. A good resource for me is a website called Davita. Here are some facts from their website.

"The goal of the CKD non-dialysis diet is to preserve existing kidney function to delay the later stages of CKD, particularly stage 5, which is also called end stage renal disease (ESRD). This is the stage when dialysis or transplant becomes necessary in order to live".

I am labeled as ESRD, but we are trying to squeeze every ounce of life out of my kidneys and avoid dialysis. We are looking for a live donor before my kidneys completely fail.

Surprisingly, foods that are big no-no's are oranges, beans, pumpkin, tomatoes,squash, kiwi, anything whole wheat or grain, potatoes, and any dairy product. There are many more listed on the website too. Not so surprising is chocolate and any "cola" soda. I can have sprite, ginger ale, or other light colored beverages.

I will write more about it this diet soon as I learn more about it.