Diet NutriSystem

[quilter]

I'm at the beginning of being evaluated for kidney problems. My PCP didn't like the trend of some of my bloodwork results and so had another blood draw, urine analysis and bilateral kidney ultrasound. She has sent my labs and other results to a nephrologist for consultation and her office just contacted me for an appointment...earliest date was October 23.

I have been on NutriSystem for approx 8 months, recently switching from the Senior Women to Low Sodium.

I'm wondering whether I should continue on NutriSystem or not. I like the convenience of the system, as I live alone and don't particularly like to cook. Through the system, I have all my meals and add fresh fruit and vegetables, plus salads two times per day.

Thank you for your help.

[DoriSchatell]

Quilter, the low-sodium sounds like a good decision, but you really need a dietitian to answer that question. I am guessing that if you look on the box of the Nutrisystem foods, they probably have a customer service number you could call to ask. The question to ask is, "is Nutrisystem a safe diet for me to follow if I have some degree of kidney disease?"

Ideally, you would ask this question of a renal dietitian, and you can ask the nephrologist if he or she has a renal dietitian that you could consult with--but this is often not paid for in people who have chronic kidney disease but not kidney failure, so it may or may not be possible. You could also try calling the nephrologist's office and asking the question of the doctor or one of the nurses before your appointment, so that if there is a problem with Nutrisystem and kidneys, you can do something about it sooner than 5 or 6 weeks from now.

Since the convenience of prepared foods is important to you, if there is a problem, you may also want to ask about other brands that are better.

[Beth Witten MSW ACSW]

You might want to talk with your PCP or the nephrologist about the medicines that you're taking, including over-the-counter, prescribed, herbs, and supplements. Some medicines can contribute to kidney problems. If you haven't seen the Life Options information on chronic kidney disease, you can find it here:
http://www.lifeoptions.org/kidneyinfo/pdfs/ckd_info.pdf

You might also want to look at Kidney School, especially the Introduction and Module 1 - Kidneys: How They Work, How They Fail, What You Can Do:
http://www.kidneyschool.org

These materials may help you make a list of questions to ask the nephrologist.