Today’s Kidney Diet Cookbooks
Get free kidney-friendly recipe collections from DaVita dietitians.
Today’s Kidney Diet Cookbooks
Get free kidney-friendly recipe collections from DaVita dietitians.
Join the myDaVita community to connect with others, get kidney diet tools and more.
Register for FreeSummer heat means greater thirst, a challenge to anyone on a fluid-restricted kidney diet. If you are a dialysis patient or you have chronic kidney disease (CKD) and need to limit your fluid intake, staying cool during the summer can help. Keeping liquid intake to a minimum when it’s hot outside is easier if you have a plan that includes low-sodium, thirst-quenching foods and some tricks recommended by renal dietitians.
1. Chilled fresh fruit or frozen cut-up fruit from your kidney-friendly food list. Try frozen grapes or peach slices, a refreshing cold apple or handful of chilled berries.
2. Lemon or lime slices, frozen or added to ice water. The tartness from lemon or lime stimulates saliva to help relieve a dry mouth.
3. Crispy cold vegetables. Try chilled cucumber slices, jicama, carrots, celery or radishes for a low-potassium thirst quencher.
4. Fresh mint. The flavor of mint added to salads, beverages or other dishes cools and refreshes your mouth similar to a mint-flavored gum.
5. Caffeine-free soda (7-Up, ginger ale), homemade lemonade or caffeine-free tea. Caffeine has a diuretic effect and is associated with increased urine output in people with some kidney function. However, the end result is increased thirst following caffeine consumption.
6. Gelatin. Eat small spoonfuls of flavored gelatin because it lasts longer than a mouthful of water. Make double-strength gelatin and eat as a finger food.
7. Chilled low-sodium soup. Make a chilled, low-sodium, low-potassium soup such as DaVita’s Cool Cucumber Soup to provide nourishment and to cool from the inside out.
8. Sour candy. It’s not for everyone, but eating sour candy really turns on the saliva glands, making a dry mouth moist almost immediately.
9. Frozen treats from your grocery store. A few suggestions include Minute Maid Soft Frozen Lemonade® (3 ounces of fluid, 70 calories), Fla.Vor.Ice® freezer pops (1.5 ounces, regular or sugar-free) or one of the many Popsicle® products (regular or sugar-free).
10. Flavored ice. Make flavored ice by freezing lemonade, juice or tea in an ice cube tray. Suck or munch on a cube slowly to chase away thirst without drinking.
Measure all fluids carefully in a measuring cup. Record your daily fluid intake each time you drink or eat foods that are liquid at room temperature.
See kidney-friendly food and drink choices to consider when eating out at your favorite restaurants. Choose from 12 cuisine types.