Can you recommend kidney cookbook to facilitate improved kidney functi

THE COOKING DOC'S
KIDNEY-HEALTHY COOKING
a modern 10 step guide to preventing and managing kidney disease
By Blake Shusterman, MD

This has been a great teaching tool for me.
When no one wanted to help it gave me help.
But in the end it was a kidney dietitian that helped the most. And that didn't happen till I was on dialysis.
So if you can find one I would even suggest looking for one that will do a virtual meeting on the computer.
Best of luck

@margarethill Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. It's always great to have member endorsed resources for kidney friendly diets! @dbamos1945 you may be interested in all this, also.

rsnhope.org Renal Support Network offers meetings virtually that discuss diet and recipes. The moderator of those meetings is herself a kidney patient

The National Kidney Foundation https://www.kidney.org/ offers information under their "kidney health" tab

And the renal nutritionists website can help you find someone to assist you https://www.renalnutrition.org/home

Looking at the various discussions here in the Kidney and bladder support group, you will find several that members give their input on diet and how to best help yourself. Most all of us will agree that diet is confusing, can be scary, and is the most important thing to consider!
Ginger

Sorry I do not know of such a book but I will into that myself. Chin up!

Has anyone on this site had my situation. My doctors DID NOT tell me what I had. I read in two files I keep only 3 weeks ago. What is wrong with the medical community. Not telling me two years ago, that I had CKD stage 2.
For the past two years, without being told, I am positive there has been progression in me. Isn't this part of the Hippocratic Oath? I am horrified at this point. I do have an appointment with a Nephrologist on July 10, 2025 and I pray that I get some answers. This is a life changing condition for all concerned.

@amberjack5049
I think that is way to common. And all the mistakes they and the hospitals make. I went to get my medical records and found out I supposedly had a knee replacement done while I was in the hospital for MRSA. They finally admitted to me that they mixed up my file with someone else's however, to this day, they have not corrected my record. My ex-dentist didn't tell me about a small cavity. When I went to a new dentist it needed a root canal & crown. $3,000 later I told my new dentist I want to know if you see even a hint of a problem.
Jake

In a word yes, only I was stage 3.

@amberjack5049 Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect!

It is not unusual that our doctors will not mention anything about Stage 2 CKD. In fact, most of us would be surprised if they did! Typically, we see it may not be until later stages of 3 and into 4 when they first take notice to tell us. From my own experiences, and what others may also see, is that the medical profession as a whole may not consider the reality of CKD stage 2.

While there is a naturally occurring decline in kidney function as we age, a decline in function could be caused by: medication side-effects, diabetes or high blood pressure [the 2 top leading causes of CKD], polycystic kidney disease, lifestyle/food choices, or acute kidney injury. It is in our best interest to look at the trends, not a single lab result, to see where we stand.

Will you let me know what the nephrologist says on July 10th, please? Now is the time for you to advocate for yourself, including finding a renal diet you can tolerate, getting moderate exercise, reducing your stress levels.

The National Kidney Foundation nutrition page: https://www.kidney.org/nutrition
From Renal Support Network: https://www.rsnhope.org/nutrition-data-information-for-the-kidney-diet/
Ginger

Thank you Ginger for your thoughtful and thorough responses to this discussion!
I concur that potential kidney patients often don’t even know that they have a condition until they are stage 3 or even stage 4. Consider that nephrologists’ patients are often stage 4 or worse and are in need of dialysis & / or transplant. Folks with mild or moderate kidney problems are often seeing a primary care provider and haven’t been told their situation even exists.
Secondly, as soon as you know that you have a kidney condition is the time to learn about the renal nutrition requirements. For me this meant learning about what the labs mean that my provider orders and getting a referral to a dietician who could teach me about how to “eat for these labs”. I learned about reducing sodium, the best kind of protein to consume, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, oxalates ….. I am one of those people whose kidney disease is due to diabetes and a history of hypertension (high blood pressure). So I was blessed to find a dietician who had training and experience in dealing with those conditions also.
As far as finding a “cookbook to facilitate improved kidney function”, I’m guessing you are interested in finding recipes to help. I have not actually done this but there was a Mayo Clinic Connect member that made a cookbook. She was a registered nurse, had kidney disease herself and had been on dialysis. She researched renal nutrition and made a cookbook that used acceptable ingredients &/or made kidney friendly ingredient substitutions for dishes and meals to support renal nutrition. The last I knew her kidney disease had improved and she was off of the hemodialysis that she previously required. She made this cookbook available to Mayo Clinic Connect members. I recall that she was supported by Mayo doctors and endorsed by Mayo Clinic Connect itself. If I’ve misspoken I apologize. @kamama94 could you please weigh in here? (Haven’t heard from you in a long time; hope you are well!)

@cehunt57 Here's an update.

I am a retired LPN, not an RN, but have a background in nutrition and in chemistry.

The cookbook recipes now are outdated as manufacturers and food producers frequently change amounts, nutritional values, and ingredients. However, most of the essay portion of the cookbook (such as corn, squash, and beans equalling a complete protein or using unbleached flour rather than overprocessed white flour or potassium leaching of potatoes) remains accurate. In the interest of accuracy regarding the recipe values themselves, I always caution people when they refer to those early recipes to bear in mind that those values have changed over time and to get the latest nutrient value information always read labels and in some cases even contact the manufacturer for the latest values in a product.

On a personal level, using my own accurate-at-the-time recipes got me off dialysis. I became a vegetarian and except for eggs and extremely limited dairy cooked in foods like bread, I followed a vegan diet with the result that for several years I remained in CKD Stage 3a. As a diabetic with CKD I saw that a diabetic food list/regimen in some ways conflicted with a food list/regimen for CKD and I tended to rely on the renal diet more than on a diabetic diet.

Over time, though, diabetes created quite a bit of nerve damage and I developed gastroparesis, slow stomach emptying, and often could not eat well. I had weighed about 289 prior to that but the nausea and poor appetite and swallowing difficulties resulted in almost no insulin required and contributed to my losing a total of close to 150 pounds. I also lost muscle mass and wound up in the hospital several times because I couldn't meet nutritional needs.

Recently I had laser surgery on a diverticulum associated with my pharynx and affecting the esophagus and now am on a full liquid diet with very soft foods that don't need to be chewed (potassium-leached mashed potatoes, for example, soups with very mushy potato cubes or pureed squash.) I'm slowly losing ground even though I've stayed in CKD Stage3b and use very little insulin. Part of my weakness and resultant need for someone to come in 5 days a week and do cleaning and cooking is also due to comorbidities such as CHF, COPD, musulo-skeletal deterioration, and so forth.

Although I'm not ready for it yet, my PCP and I are exploring Hospice options so if and when the time comes we won't have to rush to find appropriate end of life care.

Meanwhile, I'm still here and post in How Ablout A Laugh in the Just Want To Talk thread.

Thank you for remembering me. I hope you're doing well. And please remind everyone who reads those old recipes to read labels for updated ingredients and nutritional values and ingredients.

@kamama94 thanks for responding. I’m sorry it has taken me so long to reply. I’m sorry I messed up your nursing credentials. I’m impressed with your background in nutrition, chemistry and of course your cookbook. You responsibly have always cautioned folks to check nutrient information, labels and manufacturers.
When I first “met” you we shared CKD, diabetes and gastroparesis . I still have all that. The CKD is stable. The diabetes is the most challenging and I’m now using high tech devices (CGM & insulin pump). The gastroparesis is a fairly well controlled history. You mentioned “laser surgery on a diverticulum associated with the pharynx and affecting the esophagus”. Are there more than one diverticuli in the body? I was diagnosed with diverticulitis which to my understanding is at the lower end of the GI system. It is challenging because it prefers being fed the opposite of gastroparesis at the top end of the GI system. Gastroparesis is frequent, small, low fiber snack like meals. Diverticulitis responds well to high fiber! My primary said to experiment with small portions of foods to find what works best for me! What am I complaining for? At least it is real solid food and not full liquids / soft foods like you have to contend with. WOW no wonder you lost a lot of weight! Does not sound healthy and I’m so sorry for your hospitalizations, weakness, the need for outside help and “losing ground”. I admire you and think the world of you! I’m a bit younger than you and I guess in better shape. If I lived closer I would come and cook, clean, shop, do laundry….etc. for you and just hang out. We might enjoy one another’s company. At the very least we could commiserate about health issues.
I definitely remember you. My thoughts and prayers go with you as you and your PCP explore Hospice options and end of life care. We are both “still here”. I will be sure to venture over to visit “How About a Laugh” & “Just Want To Talk”.