Easy Renal Diet Grocery List For Healthy Kidneys

A renal diet is tailored to support kidney function, alleviate the strain on your kidneys, and promote overall health.

The specifics of your renal diet depend on what stage of kidney disease you are in and if you have other conditions, such as diabetes. 

Discussing the specifics of your renal diet with a dietitian is important.

They provide a personalized eating plan that fits your nutritional needs and health goals. 

This article delves into the essential foods of a renal diet and serves as a general guide for grocery shopping. 

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What is a Renal Diet?

Your kidneys serve as a filter in your body to remove waste and extra fluid.

When they have trouble functioning, they can’t maintain their salt and mineral balance, which increases the risk of fluid retention and further damage over time. 

To optimize your renal function, it’s imperative to manage your fluid intake and avoid foods high in sodium (salt), potassium, and phosphorus.

Understanding how much protein to eat is also important to avoid overloading your kidneys.

A renal diet centers around eating fresh foods and cooking from scratch more often than eating prepared or fast foods, as those foods tend to be high in sodium.

You’ll also need to use less salt in your cooking and learn to season your foods with herbs and sodium-free seasonings. 

By following a renal diet, you’re helping promote optimal kidney function and reduce the kidney’s workload by carefully monitoring your mineral and fluid intake. 

Who Benefits from a Renal Diet?

Eating the right types of foods can help you feel better and may slow the progression of your kidney disease.

People with chronic kidney disease, those with diabetes and kidney complications, people with high blood pressure, or those with a kidney transplant can all benefit from following a renal diet.

The whole family can benefit from eating home-cooked meals centered around fresh foods, as these foods help improve overall health and the immune system.

An Easy Renal Diet Grocery List for Healthy Kidneys 

According to the Kidney Nutrition Insitute, the foods below are considered safe on a renal diet.

You may need to make more specific modifications based on your personal nutritional needs. 

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Fruits and Vegetables

Here are fruits and vegetables that are low in potassium and good for a renal diet:

Fruits

• Apples.
• Applesauce.
• Apricots.
• Blackberries.
• Blueberries.
• Boysenberries.
• Cherries.
• Clementine oranges.
• Cranberries.
• Cranberry sauce.
• Dewberries.
• Figs.
• Fruit cocktail.
• Grapes.
• Lemons.
• Limes.
• Mandarin oranges.
• Mulberries.
• Passion fruit.
• Peaches.
• Pears.
• Pineapple.
• Plums.
• Raspberries.
• Strawberries.
• Tangerines

Vegetables

• Alfalfa sprouts.
• Arugula.
• Asparagus.
• Bamboo shoots.
• Bean sprouts.
• Broccoli.
• Cabbage.
• Carrots.
• Cauliflower.
• Celery.
• Chili peppers.
• Chives.
• Collard greens.
• Cucumbers.
• Eggplant.
• Endive.
• Escarole.
• Garlic.
• Hominy.
• Jicama.
• Kale.
• Leeks.
• Lettuce.
• Mushrooms.
• Mustard greens.
• Okra.
• Onions.
• Pea pods/peas.
• Pimientos.
• Radishes.
• Rhubarb.
• Shallots.
• Spaghetti squash.
• Spinach.
• Summer squash.
• Turnip greens.
• Turnips.
• Water chestnuts.
• Watercress.
• Zucchini.

Protein Sources

While eating protein is important for the building and maintenance of tissues, hormones, and vital organs, eating too much protein can produce waste products in your bloodstream that harm your kidneys.

A dietitian can help you learn more about how much protein you should eat daily.

• Beef.
• Chicken.
• Lamb.
• Pork.
• Turkey.
• Tofu, tempeh.
• Fish/tuna fish.
• Shellfish.
• Eggs.

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Grains 

Here are grains that are safe to eat on a renal diet. 

• Whole grain bread.
• Corn tortillas.
• Melba toast.
• Pumpernickel bread.
• Rye bread.
• Cream of wheat.
• Cream of rice.
• Grits.
• Kashi cereal.
• Oatmeal (not instant).
• Barley.
• Brown rice.
• Bulgar.
• Couscous.
• Whole grain pasta.
• Amaranth, spelt.
• Popcorn (low-sodium).

Dairy Alternatives 

Dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, and cheese, contain large amounts of phosphorus and need to be limited or avoided.

Here are some low-phosphorus dairy products. 

• Brie.
• Butter.
• Cream cheese.
• Feta cheese.
• Sour cream.

Snacks and Condiments 

When it comes to choosing your snacks, make sure to select the unsalted or low-salt versions of the snacks.

• Animal crackers.
• Graham crackers.
• Pretzels, unsalted.
• Ritz, hint of salt.
• Saltines, unsalted.
• What Thins, hint of salt.
• Hot sauce.
• Hummus.
• Mayonnaise.
• Mustard.
• Oils.
• Pesto.
• Soy sauce, low sodium.
• Vinegar.

Beverages

Some beverages, like dark sodas (colas, rootbeer, etc.), fruit punch, and canned or bottled iced teas, have added phosphorus.

Be sure to check the label of any prepared beverages you purchase to see if there is added phosphorus.

• Water.
• Coffee.
• Tea, green, black, herbal.
• Sprite, diet, 7-up, diet.
• Root beer, diet
• Ginger ale, diet.
• Almond milk.
• Rice milk.

For nutritious meal ideas, read our 7-day meal plan for kidney disease.

Beginner Tips for Following a Renal Diet

If you’re new to following a renal diet, here are several tips to help you get started. 

Learn To Read Food Labels

Before shopping, be sure you know how to read the sodium level on the Nutrition Facts label on food packages.

A Daily Value of 20% or more or products with more than 100 milligrams (mg) of salt per serving means the food is too high in sodium for a renal diet. 

Try to find lower-sodium versions of convenience foods or frozen dinners.

It’s also a good idea to rinse your canned vegetables, meats, beans, and fish with water before you eat them to reduce their sodium level. 

Know Which Foods Are High in Potassium

Food labels don’t list potassium or phosphorus levels, so it’s good to know what foods those are beforehand so you can limit or avoid them

Foods high in potassium include:

• Fruits: oranges and orange juice, nectarines, kiwis, raisins or other dried fruit, bananas, cantaloupe, honeydew, prunes, and nectarines.
• Vegetables: asparagus, avocado, potatoes, tomatoes or tomato sauce, winter squash, pumpkin, and cooked spinach.

Learn To Cook From Scratch

Cooking from scratch is important when you are following a renal diet.

It allows you to have greater control over your ingredients and adherence to the dietary guidelines for phosphorus, potassium, and sodium.

Homemade meals also allow you to incorporate fresh or whole foods while minimizing your reliance on processed foods that often contain hidden additives and preservatives that may harm your overall health. 

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Takeaway

By embracing a renal diet, you take an active role in supporting your kidney health.

The renal diet focuses on decreasing your intake of sodium, potassium, and phosphorus to help decrease the workload of the kidneys.

It also centers on consuming the right amount of protein and fluids. 

Your specific diet depends on the stage of your kidney disease and any other conditions you may have, such as diabetes. 

How a Dietitian Can Help

Following the advice of a licensed dietitian gives you the advantage of meeting your health goals, and reducing complications or the progression of your kidney disease.

Following the renal diet they provide you with can also help improve the quality of your life. 

Chronic kidney disease can change over time, which means your diet may need to change.

If you have other conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure, you may need to make further adjustments.

A renal dietitian can help bring clarity on how you can easily eat a renal diet. 

Find a dietitian near you to get started today for as little as $0—94% of our patients pay nothing out of pocket.