The holiday season is upon us and, as such, many people are getting ready to consume far more food than is actually necessary. This is typically a bad thing, for a variety of reasons, but when you’re also suffering from kidney disease the negative impact of holiday overeating is felt ten-fold. As tempted as you may be to let yourself go for a day of binge-eating heavily protein-based meals, like turkey and hams and sausage-laden stuffings, it’s simply not worth the compromise to your kidney function.

As the body absorbs nutrients from the stomach and metabolizes them by way of the liver, there are leftover amounts (especially during heavy binges) which will undoubtedly need to be excreted as waste by the kidneys. That means, the more food you dump into your body, the greater the strain is on your kidneys. This situation is compounded if you’re also consuming high-protein which leads to more protein in the urine and diminished kidney function.

So, what can you do? Of course you want to enjoy the holidays and all the seasonal dishes they offer, but some kidney-friendly advice involves sticking primarily to side dishes. Vegetables are best, things like sweet potatoes, corn, mashed potatoes, greens…this is where you should be deriving most of your food from. Have a bigger helping of salad before the main course, or, better yet, eat something before you go to your holiday bash. This will curb your appetite somewhat and you’ll be less likely to eat more than your share. For desserts, be sure to opt for fruits or less-sugar laden sweets like puddings or a small helping of a fruit pie. It’s much better to be healthy all year-round, than blow it all for one free-for-all holiday you, and your kidneys, will end up regretting!

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