For Dialysis: How Much Protein is Enough

As a person's kidney function diminishes, the dietary restrictions needed to compensate are increased.An adequate amount of protein is essential when you have chronic kidney disease (CKD)and are on dialysis. But how much protein should you consume?

The more amino acids that need removing, the harder the kidneys have to work. And for people with kidney disease, this can mean an acceleration of their kidney disease.So if a person stops eating protein, then they are saving their kidneys, right?No, because if we didn't eat protein, then malnutrition would develop and more illness would occur.So the solution is to eat enough protein to maintain health, but to minimize the excess amino acids and spare the kidneys.

How much protein is enough?

A healthy, active person needs about 0.36 grams of protein per pound of body weight.a place to start for the person with kidney disease is to stop eating their usual amounts of protein and restrict their intake to only what their body needs. The current recommendation for a pre-dialysis diets for this person is 37-41 grams of protein per day (these numbers can vary depending on the stage of kidney disease). This means if you cut back to the recommended intake for a healthy individual, you have already nearly met the restrictions required for the pre-dialysis kidney diet! In order to reduce protein waste, it is recommended that 60% or more of the protein should be from HBV sources.

Good Sources of Protein for Dialysis Patients

Chicken

Cornish game hen

Turkey

Beef

Lamb

Veal

Pork chop

Pork roast

Clams

Crab

Lobster

Scallops

Shrimp

Egg whites

Liquid egg substitute

Fresh or frozen fish (cod, halibut, salmon, sole, swordfish, trout)

Unsalted, canned fish (tuna)

Protein added to your diet will help enable you to losing muscle mass and support your body by having the resources to help fight infection.