When we think about nutrition, we usually focus on what we eat, like how much protein or sodium is in our food. But how we think about food and approach eating also affects our habits, our relationship with food, and our overall health and well-being. For those living with PKD, it’s important to consider our mindset around food. This blog post will look at ways to build a positive relationship with food and develop healthy habits that you can stick with over time.

Understanding Our Relationship with Food
Our relationship with food is shaped by things like culture, emotions, and personal experiences. A healthy relationship with food includes balance, kindness toward yourself, and being mindful. Food is more than just nutrients; it’s about creating habits that are good for both your body and mind, meeting your current health needs, and helping to prevent future health problems. All these parts work together to help you live better with PKD. Here are some tips to help you build a positive relationship with food.

Listen to your body
Pay attention to when you feel hungry and when you feel full. Eating when you’re hungry and stopping when you’re satisfied can help you eat in a balanced way. Eating because of emotions or boredom can lead to overeating.

Food cravings, or the strong desire to eat a specific food, can be hard to ignore, but they often happen for a reason. Listening to your body can help you manage these cravings. When you have a craving, think about your diet and consider the following questions:

• Are you eating enough calories?
• Are you following a strict or restrictive diet?
• Are you going too long without eating?
• Are your meals balanced?
• Are you avoiding your favourite foods?
• Are you feeling stressed or not getting enough sleep?

Understanding why you have cravings can help you manage them better. Working with a registered dietitian can help you find the reasons behind your cravings, create a balanced eating plan, and support your kidney health.

Practice mindful eating
Slow down and enjoy your meals. Try not to get distracted by things like TV or your phone so you can focus on the flavours and textures of your food. Being present while eating helps you listen to your body and enjoy your meals more. Take your time to taste and savour your food, which will help you appreciate your meals even more.

Avoid feeling guilty about food
All foods can fit into a balanced diet, so let yourself enjoy treats without feeling bad. When you see food as neither good nor bad, you can develop a healthier attitude towards eating. Mindfulness also means paying attention to portion sizes – it's okay to enjoy a small treat now and then.

Don’t think of nutrition as “all or nothing.” Cutting out food groups or telling yourself you “can’t” have certain foods can make you want them even more. For long-lasting healthy habits, especially with PKD, aim to find a balance so that you can maintain these changes for the long run.

Focus on nourishment
Build balanced meals with vegetables and fruits as the main focus. Try to include more plant-based proteins and choose foods that are low in sodium.

When grocery shopping, reading labels can help you choose a variety of foods. Look for foods that have 5% or less of the daily value for sodium per serving. Check for claims like “no added salt” or “low in sodium” to find foods that are better for PKD.

When eating out, check the restaurant’s nutrition information online. In Ontario, restaurants with more than 20 locations have to provide this information. Try to choose meals with about 600 mg of sodium. Knowing how much sodium is in your meal can help you balance what you eat throughout the day.

When cooking, try to reduce the sodium in your recipes. One teaspoon of salt has 2300 mg of sodium. Cutting the salt by 25% usually won’t change the taste. Many recipe websites show the nutrition information, or you can enter the ingredients into apps like Cronometer or MyFitnessPal to see how they fit into your diet.

Nurturing Your Relationship with Food
Keeping a healthy relationship with food takes time and effort. Here are some tips to help you along the way:

• Reflect Regularly: Think about your eating habits and how you feel about food. Consider what’s going well and what you could improve. Writing in a journal or talking with a healthcare professional can give you helpful insights.
• Seek Support: If you find it hard to manage your relationship with food, consider getting help from a registered dietitian or therapist. They can provide personalized tips and emotional support.
• Celebrate Progress: Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small. Whether you’ve tried a new low-sodium recipe or made a mindful choice, recognizing your progress encourages positive habits.
• Be Kind to Yourself: Be gentle with yourself on this journey. The goal is progress, not perfection. Making small, gradual changes is easier to manage and can lead to long-term success. For example, start by adding one serving of vegetables to your meals each day.

If you want to add more vegetables to your diet, soup is a great way to start. This Roasted Vegetable Soup is perfect for meal prepping, has lots of different flavours, and you can even use other vegetables you have in the fridge. It’s a PKD-friendly option that makes a filling lunch or dinner.

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Servings: 4

Ingredients
6 medium tomatoes
1 medium eggplant
2 medium zucchini
1 medium white onion
4 cloves garlic
2 TBSP olive oil
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 TBSP balsamic vinegar
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 cup no added salt canned chickpeas, drained
2 cups water

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. Wash and cut the tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, and onion into 2-inch pieces, and place on a large baking sheet with garlic and basil.
2. Drizzle olive oil, basil and black pepper over vegetables. Mix with your hands until vegetables are well coated.
3. Roast vegetables in oven for 35-45 minutes until soft.
4. Remove from oven and place in a pot. Add balsamic vinegar, vegetable broth, chickpeas and water and blend with an immersion blender until smooth.
5. Serve with sourdough or whole grain bread. Leftover soup can be kept in the refrigerator for 2 days or frozen in an airtight container or a zip-top bag for up to 3 months.

Nutrition information per serving: 233 calories, 9 g fat, 1.3 g saturated fat, 165.4 mg sodium, 34.4 g carbohydrates, 10.7 g fibre, 8.2 g protein 1179.3 mg potassium, 171.6 mg phosphorus, oxalate 45.9 mg.

Building a positive relationship with food is important for creating long-lasting eating habits that support your health and well-being with PKD. By focusing on being mindful, balanced, and kind to yourself, you can build habits that help your body and improve how you feel about food. It’s not just about what you eat but also how you think and feel about your eating habits.

About the author: Emily Campbell, RD CDE MScFN is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator with a Master’s Degree in Foods and Nutrition. Emily specializes in helping those with kidney disease overcome the confusing world of nutrition to promote health. Emily and her team of dietitians can be found at kidneynutrition.ca.

More

• Looking for more information about what to eat with PKD? Check out Love Your Kidneys, a PKD cookbook and nutrition guide written especially for people with PKD.
• Watch one of Emily's webinar or PKD Summit recordings on the topic of Nutrition and PKD, here or here.
• Browse through Emily's Kidney Nutrition blogs on our website, here.