Dialysis diet menu: 7 full days (reviewed by a nephrologist)

Starting dialysis changes the diet, often in the opposite direction to what people expect. Here is a full 7 day menu, with the numbers, plus the three rules that flip once you start.

What changes on dialysis

1. Protein goes UP, not down. Each haemodialysis session removes 6 to 12 grams of amino acids. Continuing to restrict it is the most common mistake and the most damaging: the body starts consuming muscle mass.
2. Fluid gets restricted. Between sessions your body removes very little. Every extra kilo between sessions is accumulated fluid. Soups, gelatin, ice and juicy fruit all count.
3. Potassium and phosphorus stay strict. Dialysis filters three times a week, not daily. Between sessions they build up.

The 7 day menu

Values per serving. K = potassium, P = phosphorus, Na = sodium, in milligrams.

Monday

• Breakfast: Egg white scramble with vegetables — K 212, P 31, Na 158
• Lunch: Steamed rice with green peas — K 65, P 28, Na 2
• Dinner: Light noodle soup — K 15, P 5, Na 5

Tuesday

• Breakfast: White toast with cottage cheese and strawberries — K 189, P 116, Na 191
• Lunch: White pasta with garlic — K 95, P 68, Na 103
• Dinner: Vegetable soup — K 169, P 32, Na 88

Wednesday

• Breakfast: Baked turnip hash browns — K 193, P 56, Na 170
• Lunch: Fried rice, eastern style — K 100, P 21, Na 73
• Dinner: Rice and bell pepper salad — K 189, P 50, Na 6

Thursday

• Breakfast: Scrambled tofu — K 209, P 132, Na 10
• Lunch: Pasta with garlic and zucchini — K 129, P 58, Na 6
• Dinner: Steamed chayote with herb butter — K 218, P 37, Na 9

Friday

• Breakfast: Sweet potato toast — K 150, P 52, Na 33
• Lunch: Rice with steamed chayote — K 132, P 30, Na 100
• Dinner: Light noodle soup — K 15, P 5, Na 5

Saturday

• Breakfast: Egg white scramble — K 212, P 31, Na 158
• Lunch: White pasta with garlic — K 95, P 68, Na 103
• Dinner: Rice and bell pepper salad — K 189, P 50, Na 6

Sunday

• Breakfast: White toast with cottage cheese — K 189, P 116, Na 191
• Lunch: Steamed rice with green peas — K 65, P 28, Na 2
• Dinner: Vegetable soup — K 169, P 32, Na 88

How to adapt it

Add your protein to every meal. This menu is the carbohydrate and vegetable base. Your nephrologist will tell you how many grams of protein you need daily: spread them across the three meals with egg, chicken, turkey or white fish.

Watch the fluid. The soups here count toward your restriction. If your limit is strict, swap them for a dry dish.

Vegetables are leached. Potato, sweet potato, carrot and chayote: peeled, cut small, soaked and boiled discarding the water twice. Without that step the values above do not apply.

This menu is an example, not a prescription. Your exact limits depend on your lab results and your type of dialysis. Confirm them with your nephrologist or your unit's renal dietitian.

Read also: Renal diet food list · Stage 4 kidney diet