sodium, dialysis and thirst

[lunadatura]

I tried to find the answers to my questions on the board but could not so thought I might drop post this topic

for the first three years of dialysis or so i had some urinary output. however this is not longer - sigh.

I had been able to ignore my sodium intake but lately have had major problems with fluid retention and weight gain between session.

so my primary questions are

a) how much sodium can i safety intake ?

i am crazy thirsty all the time and i did not know that this was actually caused but salt intake. I dont really add salt to my food but as you well know its in every thing- common foods are peanut butter, crackers, chips, cheese, and some frozen foods like echiladas never mind the take out from mexican, vietnamese and chinese...

b) how long does it take for sodium to clear the system so i dont feel so thirsty?

thanks

[bevvy5]

NOt sure if you 're on PD or hemo.  When hubby was complaining about being thirsty, his neph reduced the sodium number in his dialysis prescription (he's a home hemo patient).  It helped a lot. 

[noahvale]

*

[Rerun]

If you visit the diet section on this site there are some good recipes which are low in sodium.  Use Mrs. Dash if you need flavor on such foods as eggs. 

I think I'm reset once I'm off dialysis for sodium.  So, I start again trying to watch sodium and usually need to be reset by the time dialysis comes again.

I thought it was 1000mg of sodium a day for dialysis patients, but I could be wrong. 

For cramping drink a gulp of Tonic Water everyday.  It has quinine in it which is a muscle relaxer.

[SteveK87]

My slogan from my experiences trying to get Ashley on a decent diet without the high sodium/high phosphorus etc is the easier it is to prepare the worse it is for you.