How does what I eat, and drink affect my hemodialysis?
Your kidney is the organ responsible of getting rid of most of the waste of what you eat this includes but not limited to urea, phosphorus, and potassium.
Since your kidneys are functioning at a lower capacity, these wastes would accumulate in your body and would need to be removed from your blood by dialysis. the more waste you build by eating too much the more dialysis time/ frequency you need.
Who would advice me on what I should eat?
HHD has dedicated renal dietitian who knows well the ingredients of your food and she will guide you on how much fluid you should take based on your urine out put and how to reduce intake of items that contains too much toxins such urea, sodium, potassium and phosphorus.
How much fluid should I take in between dialysis sessions and what happens if I take much fluid?
Your body would need 500-1000 mls of fluid per day to perform the daily functions. this is in addition to the daily urine out put if any.
If you don’t pass urine and you take more fluids, it will accumulate in your body and cause swelling of limbs face and you may become short of breath.
We measure the extra fluid in your body by subtracting your weight immediately before your dialysis session from your ideal weight which is the weight at which you don’t have swelling of your body or shortness of breath.
The fluid you gain above your ideal weight is usually removed with every dialysis session
Coming to dialysis with large fluid gain eg 4 litres mean that we have to remove this amount during your dialysis time. Removing big amounts of fluid may lead to drop in your blood pressure and may cause feeling of sickness and you may get muscle cramps.
What is counted as fluid?
Water and beverages, Juice, Tea ,coffee , soup and any food in liquid form.
Your dry weight is your weight after a hemodialysis session has removed all extra fluid from your body. Controlling your liquid intake helps you stay at your proper dry weight. If you let too much fluid buildup between dialysis sessions, it is harder to achieve your dry weight. Your health care provider can help you figure out what dry weight is right for you.
What are the Foods item with High potassium?
-Dates
-Banana
-Dried fruit
-Orange
What is the Food item with High phosphorus?
– Egg
– Canned food
-Fish
-nuts
– Legumes
-Beans
-Whole grain products
-Soft drinks
