What can I eat? Renal Dietitians

1. What can I eat?Renal Dietitians

2. Diet is an important part of your treatment, along with any medication you choose

3. Why do I need to change my diet? • The kidneys remove waste products • and excess fluid from the blood • When they do not work properly these waste products and excess fluid build up in our blood • As the levels increase other parts of our body can be affected and we can feel unwell • Altering our diet can help prevent some levels increasing too much

4. When do I need to change my diet? • When your blood levels and/or fluid start to build up to harmful levels • Your Doctor or Nurse will let you and the Dietitian know when this happens • Alternatively you may lose your appetite and/or experience weight loss • You might see a Dietitian before starting dialysis • All people on dialysis are seen by a Dietitian

5. What happens when I see a Dietitian? • Your diet will be individually assessed and tailored according to: • Your appetite • The type of food you normally eat • Other specific diets you may be following e.g. if you have diabetes • Your blood results • Your urine output • Your weight and height • The type of dialysis you choose

6. Dialysis • Helps remove waste products and fluid from the blood • Unfortunately it is not as efficient as normal healthy kidneys • Usually some type of dietary modifications are necessary

7. Haemodialysis • You attend the unit three times a week • The dialysis machine removes waste products and fluid • Waste products and fluid build up between dialysis sessions • Your diet is designed to stop these waste products and fluid getting to a level that could be harmful

8. Peritoneal dialysis • You do this type of dialysis every day • It allows a slow continuous removal of waste products and fluid from your body • Less build up of waste products but some care with diet and fluids might be needed • A high protein intake and healthy eating are important to help maintain adequate nutrition and avoid undesirable weight gain

9. Dietary guidelines

10. Dietary guidelines (continued)

11. What happens when I see a Dietitian? • The aim of our advice is to keep you in the best nutritional status possible • We will give you ideas on what to eat as well as what to avoid • You may receive written information • We will give you our contact number for future queries • We will arrange follow up as needed

12. What shall I do now? • If you have seen a Dietitian follow the advice given • Try to maintain a healthy weight • Try to eat a variety of foods to ensure a balanced diet • Aim to drink about 8 glasses/cups of fluid each day • If your appetite is reduced and you are losing weight let your Doctor, Nurse or Dietitian know as soon as possible

13. What shall I do now? • Reducing your salt intake can help reduce your blood pressure. Try: - adding less in cooking - not to add salt at the table - to avoid salty foods, e.g. processed foods - to avoid salt substitutes - using alternative flavourings • Refer to the ‘Healthy eating for your kidneys’ information sheet in your pack for further advice

14. How do I contact a Dietitian? • Telephone our department to arrange to speak with one of the Renal Dietitians – 01603 287011 • Leave a message with any of the renal team • Remember, you do not have to wait for a Doctor to refer you. Thank you for listening – are there any questions?