refuse

[MonicaJade]

I have found a pretty good balance for myself. I just had a blood test this week and my potassium was 4.3 and phosphorus was 5.4. I was told no tomato sauce ever, but seashells and Tomato sauce was a family staple I’ve lived on my entire life. I did give it up for the first year, but I couldn’t stand it, so now I eat some diced tomatoes in some pasta soup with chicken, and occasionally I will have 2 tablespoons of Ragu with some pasta and chicken, and my potassium cooperates with that thank goodness. Just enough tomato sauce.

[Marilee]

I agree, Monica - It's all about balance. So happy that you can enjoy some tomatoes from time to time again! 

[GA_DAWG]

I agree about the pasta sauce. the first time they were explaining the things I should avoid, while still in the hospital, I asked about pasta sauce. The nutritionist asked if I could hold it to a quarter cup, to which I told her a lot easier than I could do without. But it i only like a once a month thing. Chocolate on th eother hand...well.

[Riki]

I was fairly lucky in that during my 27 months on dialysis, I really didn't have any issues with potassium or phosphorus.  I didn't eat a banana or an orange for that entire time, but I had no issues with tomatoes or potatoes.  It unnerved my dietitian to no end that I could eat those items and still have no issue with potassium.  I swear that she thought I was doing it out of spite.  I figured as long as my labs were in shape, she could go pound sand.

My dietician goes over my labs with me every month.  Usually, everything is in normal ranges.  She knows how I eat, because I'm honest with her about it, and she just tells me to keep doing what I'm doing, because it seems to be working.  I don't know why your dietician would be upset with you because your labs were good. That's just nuts

[LorinnPKD]

Yeah, I'm fine on potassium right now, too, and my dieticians (I've had two so far) have both reacted to that like I hit the lottery.

They've been all about moderation.  Both times my phosphorus went up right after easter because of those wonderful little chocolate malted eggs and caramel cadburys, but they're not going to be alarmed unless it stays up for 2-3 labs.

[MonicaJade]

Yeah, I'm fine on potassium right now, too, and my dieticians (I've had two so far) have both reacted to that like I hit the lottery.

They've been all about moderation.  Both times my phosphorus went up right after easter because of those wonderful little chocolate malted eggs and caramel cadburys, but they're not going to be alarmed unless it stays up for 2-3 labs.

Oh, this reminds me. I overdid it on the chocolate covered cherries last december, because I just planned to get one box and eat one or two and give the rest to my mom and brother (which I did) but I just happened to stumble across chocolate covered BLUEBERRIES which I had never seen before. I love cooked blueberries and they tasted just like you’d imagine. Thing is, I’m the only one who likes blueberries so I ended up eating the whole box. :/ Sent my phosphorus up to 6 something, but man, it felt like it was almost worth it! I’ll be more careful next time though (except if I get a kidney, then I will give up chocolate)

[Geiser100]

I have not given up Cola. I have greatly reduced it to one can a day, but I can't live without it.

[LorinnPKD]

Monica, I love those chocolate covered cherries in December!  It's not Christmas without them.

And now that I know about chocolate covered blueberries, I must have them!  Just a few, I promise!

[GA_DAWG]

I had a great aunt who was pretty much a drunk and mean as the devil. Every year for Christmans she would give me a box of those cherries. Every time I start to buy some, I think of her and put them back.

[MonicaJade]

Monica, I love those chocolate covered cherries in December!  It's not Christmas without them.

And now that I know about chocolate covered blueberries, I must have them!  Just a few, I promise!

Be careful! It may be hard to stop, lol. When I ate them, I had one or two a day, with a Renvella and that was a bit much.

I had a great aunt who was pretty much a drunk and mean as the devil. Every year for Christmans she would give me a box of those cherries. Every time I start to buy some, I think of her and put them back.

I actually have the opposite memory of the cherries. I’m not sure how, but my grandparents whom I loved and lived beside ended up with a HUGE supply of them. I was about 8 or 9 and I saw them abd it was like they had a whole store’s worth. They shared them of course.

[Charlie B53]

I'm 64 now and rarely eat a cherry. Period.  Even pie.

As a kid growing up in and around the orchards in Yakima, Wa.  aka 'The Fruitbowl of the Nation"

# brothers and I would get jobs 'picking' fruit.  Tedious work, climbing a ladder, back then they didn't chop the top of the trees short and flat so 30 foot ladders were common, and still not tall enough. A full apple bag standing on the very top of a ladder can be a real trick just to get down safely, but we're talking cherries here.

So you have a bucket hanging on your belly.

One cherry goes in the bucket.

One cherry goes in your mouth.

And you bounce one cherry off of your Brother. Leaving a nice red stain on his clean white T-Shirt.

We didn't make much money.

And I lost my taste for cherries.

[Marilee]

Ah-hah, Charlie - so maybe the original poster could get a job in an Orange orchard... No more orange juice for breakfast!

(ps. We used to go the local cherry orchards to pick cherries, too, but not for pay - we'd fill one coffee can and take 'em home. Same tall ladders, though (shudder).

[coldhoist]

I am not giving up anything. Everything in moderation. I too love my orange juice and will not give it up . I do not drink it everyday. I probably only buy it every three weeks on so. All of my test results are in the good range.

[GA_DAWG]

Marinara is still the Achilles Heel.