Traditionally, white bread was recommended for people with kidney disease because it has less potassium and phosphorus.
White bread is typically recommended over whole wheat bread on a renal diet due to its lower phosphorus and potassium levels. All bread contains sodium, so it's best to compare food labels and choose a lower sodium variety.
While whole-grain foods and nuts have lots of nutrients and fiber, they are also high-potassium foods. In order to lower your potassium intake, skip whole-wheat bread and pasta, whole-grain rice and bran cereal. Instead, choose lower-fiber white versions of these foods for your diet.
Sourdough bread is an excellent source of: Calcium. Potassium. Magnesium.
Sourdough contains a variety of vitamins and nutrients, making it super beneficial to your day-to-day health. Sourdough bread has small to moderate amounts of: iron, manganese, calcium, B1-B6, B12, folate, zinc, potassium, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, selenium, iron, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, and vitamin E.
Foods low in potassium include most refined fats and oils, grains like cornmeal, white rice, and pasta, cheeses like soft goat cheese, and blueberries, eggs, leeks, Napa cabbage, and chia seeds. Boiling vegetables in water and discarding the water can help reduce their potassium and electrolyte content.
Phosphorus is another ingredient that though required by the body can accumulate in the blood and cause weak bones in kidney patients. Foods to eat include: Rice cereals, corn, and cream of wheat. Sourdough, Italian, and French bread.
Loading up on pasta and rice may not be something many diet books recommend, but both are pretty low on potassium. They contain between 30 and 50 mg per half-cup. However, you should watch what you put on them. Just half a cup of tomato sauce or tomato puree can contain as much as 550 mg of potassium.
Remember: If possible, make meat sandwiches from low-sodium, fresh-cooked meats such as chicken, turkey breast, roast beef, pork or fish in 2 to 3 ounce portions. Egg salad or fried egg sandwiches are good low-sodium, high-protein choices.
If you want to reduce your salt intake, try having Salt 'n' Shake crisps (without adding the salt sachet). Better sweet snacks include: • jelly sweets • fruit gums • marshmallows • Turkish delight • mints • doughnuts • shortbread • ginger biscuits • rich tea biscuits • digestive biscuits.
Fruits and Vegetables
For fruit, snack on apples, berries, grapes, peaches, pears, plums or watermelon. Try fruit salad or fruit kebabs if your usual fruit snacks are boring. Low-potassium veggies include carrots, cucumbers, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower and corn.
Normally, your kidneys keep a healthy balance of potassium by flushing excess potassium out of your body.
Potassium and exercise
When you exercise, your muscles lose potassium. This creates a substantial rise in blood potassium levels. For most people, the kidneys filter out the extra potassium fairly quickly, and potassium levels return to normal within a few minutes of rest.
Most breads and cereals are good choices as they are low in potassium.
If your doctor has recommended a low-potassium diet, you can probably still enjoy oatmeal a few times per week. If, however, you need to limit phosphorus as well due to kidney issues, you may need to limit or avoid oatmeal, opting instead for cream of wheat or grits when you have a hankering for hot cereal.
Choose soy, almond, cashew, or rice milk for less phosphorus and less potassium than cow's milk.
Some of the lowest potassium meats are clams, oysters, and tuna. Chicken and turkey aren't considered low potassium meats, but they are lower than other types of meats. Deli meats are not only high in potassium but can also be high in sodium and contain phosphorus additives.