Quince is a pear shaped, golden yellow fruit related to the pear and apple fruit family. Unlike it’s cousin fruits, the quince is very tannic and bitter when eaten raw, so most recipes call for cooking the fruit. When sugar is added the cooked quince turns crimson red and develops a flavor described as a combination of rose, vanilla, cinnamon and cardamom. Some popular quince recipes include quince baked or poached with sugar, quince added to stewed or slow cooked meat dishes, quince tarts, preserves and a spreadable paste known as membrillo.

In the US, quince is available in the fall. You can find it at farmer’s markets, large supermarkets and specialty and ethnic stores. Turkey is the world’s largest quince producer/exporter.

Nutritionally, a medium quince has around 75 calories and 14 grams of carbohydrate. With only 181 mg potassium, 16 mg phosphorus and 4 mg sodium, quince is a great fruit choice for a kidney diet.

Treat yourself to a new taste experience! Look for the raw fruit to cook or shop for quince paste or jelly.

Here’s an easy recipe for Baked Quince: 

Portions:  8           

Serving size:  1/2 quince

Ingredients

• 4 medium quinces
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 cups water
• 2-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Peel the fruit, cut in half and remove seeds. Place in a baking dish.
3. Pour sugar over quince halves and dot each piece with butter.
4. Add water and bake for 1 hour.
5. Serve each quince half with a spoonful of whipped topping.

Nutrients

152 calories, 0 protein, 30 g carbohydrate, 4 g fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 5 mg sodium, 93 mg potassium, 9 mg phosphorus, 9 mg calcium, 0.8 g fiber

Visit DaVita.com to discover more kidney-friendly fruit recipes. Some of  my favorites include:

• Apples Baked in Cider
• Blueberry Peach Crisp
• Creamy Grape Salad
• Peach Cobbler
• Traverse City Cherry Crisp
• Zingy Spiced Pears

Kidney diet resources from DaVita.com

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Phosphorus Challenge

Got milk? Americans are familiar with the milk ad campaign that shows up on television and in magazines. Celebrities sport a milk mustache that  promotes health benefits of drinking milk. For people with kidney disease on dialysis, milk restriction is advised. Milk is high in potassium, phosphorus and calcium-some of the nutrients that become out of balance when the kidneys are no longer working. Milk is often limited by chronic kidney disease patients who are on a lower protein diet. Read more…

Today I received a question about the best cereals for a person in stage 3 chronic kidney disease (CKD) to eat. Instead of sending my answer to only one person I thought I would share it with all of you as well.

Some good hot cereal choices include cream of wheat, Malt-o-Meal, grits, and even oatmeal a few times a week. (Stick with the cook and serve cereals instead of the higher sodium instant ones.) Many diet guides place oatmeal in the limit or avoid list because it does contain more phosphorus than the other hot cereals listed.

For ready-to-eat cereals look on the Nutrition Facts label and select the brands lowest in sodium and phosphorus. Lower sodium choices help with blood pressure control. Many cereals give the % Daily Value for phosphorus rather than milligrams. Try to go with those containing 10% DV or less. In general, cereals with added nuts or whole grain tend to have higher amounts of phosphorus.

Read more…

Can too much of a water soluble vitamin really be bad for your kidneys? I first ran across an article “B Vitamins Harm Kidneys” in the June issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter (http://www.cspinet.org/). According to the article about a Canadian research study, 238 diabetics with early stage chronic kidney disease (CKD) took a high dose folic acid, vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12 pill or a placebo. After three years the study revealed a greater decrease in kidney function and heart attack or stroke in the participants receiving the B vitamin. Read more…

One of the biggest helpers with learning about and following a kidney diet is a good kidney diet cookbook. Several years ago I posted the National Kidney Foundation kidney cookbook list for you to use as a guide. 

Here’s a link to the latest version: http://www.kidney.org/professionals/CRN/cookbooks.cfm. I also want to tell you about some of the recipe books for dialysis and chronic kidney patients that I have in my collection.

At the top of my list is my own renal cookbook called Read more…

Pineapple is a symbol of friendship and hospitality as well as a sense of welcome, good cheer, warmth and family affection. It’s also a great fruit choice for the kidney diet. The DaVita Dietitian team admires the pineapple so much they chose it for their logo to go with their motto “Improving Nutrition Together”.

Pineapple fits a low potassium diet plan with 125 mg potassium for 1/2 cup frozen or canned (chunks or crushed), 2 rings or 3/4 cup fresh. Read more…

When you find out you need dialysis due to kidney failure, options for treatment include transplant, traditional in-center hemodialysis (ICHD), home hemodialysis (HHD), in-center nocturnal dialysis (ICND) and peritoneal dialysis (PD). Each treatment choice has different pros and cons when it comes to diet. Today let’s take a look at the peritoneal dialysis diet.

PD is performed on a daily basis which means waste and fluids are removed more often compared to three times a week traditional in-center hemodialysis. For this reason some parts of the diet are more liberal. Read more…

Are you ready to take the challenge? DaVita has launched the DaVita Phosphorus Challenge, a fun way to learn about phosphorus with games, quizzes, articles, videos, recipes, polls and community discussion boards. You can create a user profile and connect with other challengers while earning points as you learn.

After signing up for the DaVita Phosphorus Challenge, you will receive 11 emails over the next 30 days with educational information about phosphorus and challenges to help you learn. On the last day you will receive a certificate and you will continue to have access to the games, education content and community section of the DaVita Phosphorus Challenge.

Phosphorus is a serious issue for people with chronic kidney disease. Uncontrolled phosphorus levels contribute to bone and heart disease. Early phosphorus control can keep you healthier.

Sign up and take the DaVita Phosphorus Challenge today. I am interested in hearing from you.

Diabetes is a risk factor for kidney disease. In fact, over 50% of patients on dialysis have diabetes.  So if you have diabetes find out what can you do to prevent or delay kidney disease.

Results from a 4-1/2 year study of almost 1300 Chinese people with type 2 diabetes points to the American Diabetes Association targets to answer this question. (Archives of Internal Medicine, 2010:170:155-161). The study researchers reported that meeting the ADA target goals for hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C), blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides make a difference in keeping kidneys healthy. In fact, focusing on these targets can reduce risk of diabetic nephropathy by up to 35%.

American Diabetes Association Targets

• HbA1C less than 7%*
• Pre-meal glucose 90 to 130 mg/dL
• After meal glucose no higher than 180 mg/dL
• LDL cholesterol less than 100 mg/dL
• HDL cholesterol above 50 mg/dL for women and 40 mg/dL for men*
• Triglycerides less than 150 mg/dL
• Systolic blood pressure below 130 mm Hg* Read more…

A high salt intake is even more damaging to your health than eating too many calories, too much cholesterol or even smoking. That’s because eating too much sodium can cause high blood pressure and can interfere with the effectiveness of your blood pressure medications. Uncontrolled blood pressure is the leading cause of strokes and heart attacks. For kidney patients on dialysis, salt not only increases blood pressure, it contributes to thirst and makes removal of fluid from your body more difficult. Read more…