It was two years ago that my husband began kidney dialyis after being a diabetic for many years. He was never very good about watching his diet and now he has to watch it all the time. He is in what is referred to as end stage renal disease, ESRD for short. The trips to dialysis are trying for him, but he has managed to put it together with his work schedule and so far so good. He feels pretty good most of the time.

SODIUM AND FLUIDS:

The diet restrictions are very difficult. To begin with of course he has to watch his sodium, his kidneys don't work so that just makes sense I guess. He also has to severely limit his intake of liquids every day for the same reason. These are difficult but I can control the sodium in cooking and he just has to get used to not drinking so much fluid every day. He does go out to lunch a lot from his work and that is a problem with sodium. He is monitored at dialysis which he goes to three times a week at Davita. He gets weighed before and after to make sure they are taking off enough fluid. If he has had too much sodium and has a lot of fluid, he tends to cramp up a lot during the treatment and that is very painful for him.

PHOSPHORUS AND CALCIUM:

Phosphorus is a mineral found in all foods but some foods have a greater amount, dairy products, nuts in any form, dried beans and peas, cola, beer, and cocoa. Dialysis removes some of the phosphorus but not all and when it builds up calcium is pulled from your bones. This will cause weakness over time. Calcium phosphorus crystals can also build up in joints, muscles, skin and heart, This in turn can cause damage to the heart, poor circulations and skin ulcers. He takes a binder medication with every meal and snacks which is supposed to keep it in control. This is the area he has the most problem with, he has blood work every month at treatment and the phosphorus and calcium are always a little high. While calcium is good for us it is in a lot of foods that are high in phosphorus so for the dialysis patient, calcium is not a good thing. I use non-dairy creamers in place of milk in a lot of recipes and we have really gotten used to it, He uses it on cereal and I make pudding with it, it does work. He gets vitamin supplements at treatment to make up for what he is missing in these foods.

POTASSIUM:

Potassium is also a big problem for my husband. He always has too much and needs to limit his amount in foods. This covers a lot of foods especially now that summer is coming. Bananas, melons, oranges, potatoes, tomatoes, dairy products again, dried beansandpeas. Here is some irony there is a high amount of potassium in salt substitutes so he can't even use those. Sometimes you can't win! I have learned some tricks from Davita.com. There is a way to serve potatoes by "dialyzing" them. I peel and then cube fresh potatoes and then soak in a large bowl 3 to 1 for several hours. I then cook them any way I like. They are a little more porous this way and cook much quicker but taste fine. The other fruits I avoid for us and focus more on apples, pears, peaches etc. things that he can have. I make a delicious potato salad that is my husbands favorite. Now I can still make it using "dialized" potatoes.

PROTEIN:

This is actually a good area protein he does need in bigger quantities. I just have to make sure they are proteins that are not rich in phosphorus, calcium or potassium. For the most part he can have fresh meats and poultry, fish and some seafood. He can have eggs in limited quantities. Hot dogs and sausages are extremely limited of course due to sodium.

CREATIVITY:

I have learned a lot from the dieticians at Davita and just reading. I am a certified medical assistant but have never worked in a field which pertains to this, so I had and still have a lot of studying to do. There is still a lot of ways to make his diet interesting and something we can all eat. I love to cook and I love a challenge. There are wonderful fresh fruit salads, homemade "dialized" potato salad. I do a lot with kabobs which are great because they involve a lot of meat and vegetables. I have learned to make sauces and marinades that are low sodium and taste good. The bottom line is when you love someone you will find a way to make it work. We have been married for twenty seven years and have a beautiful twenty three year old daughter. We pray daily for a kidney transplant because I am selfish I want more time with him.

 Serves 4

6 nice sized red skin potatoes (or double if they are very small),cooked, cooled and cubed

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped ( or more if you like I have to limit for my husband)

1 cup light mayo

salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients very gently together and enjoy. This is just a good old-fashioned nothing fancy potato salad but we love it. It is easy to make and can be made ahead and refrigerated for a 1 or 2 days. For the kidney patient I "dialize" the potatoes ahead. I peel then chop and soak them in water 3-1 for 4 or 5 hours and then I cook them . They cook really fast this way so I have to watch them. After they cool I just continue with ingredients. I like to save a hard boiled egg and slice on top for display before it gets devoured .

I know there are many people with health problems. I am hoping by sharing and discussing that we can come together and help each other. Somehow it makes me feel less alone. I have displayed a painting our daughter did for an art class that I think is fitting. I hope you enjoy it