Smoothies for Kidney Health: A Delicious Approach to the Prevention and Management of Kidney Problems and So Much More Paperback – April 27, 2015

This wonderful book is written by a woman and her daughter who share their personal stories with chronic kidney disease, (CKD). When the mother was diagnosed with CKD, both the mother and daughter followed a protective kidney and heart healthy diet to improve their overall health, even though it was the mother's kidney function which was failing. The mother's nephrologist had predicted that the mother would need a transplant or dialysis within three years, but with their special diet, it was six years before the mother's kidney function failed. Her daughter offered her mother one of her kidneys which matched. After the operation, they both needed to continue to eat a kidney friendly diet to protect their kidneys for the rest of their lives. Having eaten a diet to preserve kidney function for years, they decided to write this book to help other people struggling with chronic kidney disease. The information given on kidney function and the foods to avoid and those safe to eat is very thorough and easy to understand. All of the advice, given by a woman and her daughter, who have really lived with renal failure, is information and a diet I can trust. The smoothies are very tasty and easy to make. I did have to purchase different ingredients that were not in my usual pantry items, in order to make the smoothies. I did find all of the ingredients I didn't have on Amazon, or the grocery store, so it made the diet easy to begin. I have been on the diet for two weeks now, and I am enjoying it. If I can protect my kidneys, so I never have to experience dialysis, or a transplant, eating differently is well worth it. I did purchase other kidney diet books on Amazon, but none were as complete as this book. Most lacked the nutrient values for each recipe, and some of the ingredients for their recipes were ingredients not recommended by my nephrologist. The information in this book has provided me with a diet that will help to protect my kidney function and overall health, and a diet that I can manage easily by myself. This book is a valuable tool for people experiencing CKD, or for those who want to prevent all of the diseases, like diabetes, which can lead to CKD in the future if you become diabetic. I believe that you will find the book very helpful for improving your kidney function and your overall health.

Easy to follow the recipes for smoothies

I bought this as a gift for my mother after she had surgery and had one of her kidneys removed(very early detection of cancer) we both loved smoothies so finding this was nice and would help her keep her one good kidney healthy.

If you or someone you love is dealing with kidney issues, "Smoothies for Kidney Health" is a godsend! It's packed with dozens of simple recipes for delicious and beautiful smoothies that everyone will enjoy. My partner has kidney disease, and watching what we eat is one way I can support her in her quest for a long and healthy life.Not just a collection of recipes, the first half of "Smoothies for Kidney Health" is a treasure trove of helpful information about kidney health and nutrition. (Did you know that 100% fruit juice is NOT good for kidney health??) Browsing this section will make you feel like an expert on the most important aspects of how kidneys work, how to protect them, and what to avoid.Recipes fill the second half and are presented in a sort of "For Dummies" format - one to a page with ingredients listed in large black type on a white background that my 65 year-old eyes can easily handle. Each includes a tempting description of the smoothie, the list of ingredients and mixing instructions, a clear table of nutrient values, and a little bit of the science about why the smoothie is good for you.Recipes are grouped for folks with different needs, including one for those on dialysis. One recipe in that group, "Red Velvet Chocolate Delight", includes raspberries, pineapple, and cocoa. Yum!!! Maybe the next edition can include little scratch-n-sniff panels. :)Grab a copy of this cornucopia of useful information and tasty delights for your own collection and another for someone you know who's living with kidney disease or its precursor, diabetes.

The problem w/ smoothies is too much fruit & not enough veggies. The smoothies do seem to be good & the potassium, phosphorus, calcium, etc levels for each recipe are very nice to know for which recipes are appropriate for each CKD stage. Almost all the recipes are very fruit heavy & veggie light, but that's pretty much the case for most smoothies I guess. That being said, my concern is sugar levels & that has been left out of the equation. There was mention that the sugar is naturally occuring in the fruits & not added sugar, & that sugar is somehow offset or managed in a way by higher fiber content. Ok, yeah, that may be true, but I don't think IMO that a person can use these fruit heavy recipes as the bulk of their diet or there will be a sugar problem. That being said, these do look like healthy smoothies, & I didn't get the impression that the authors are saying to make this exclusively your whole diet. If they are incorporated into a varied diet, then yes, this can be a helpful book. Especially when a patient is uninterested in food & feeling too sick to eat. There are times these smoothies could be helpful & they do give you the breakdown on how much of certain things you're ingesting in each smoothie that are crucial to CKD w/ just the exception of sugar content from the fruit. I suppose that if a person really wanted to have a smoothie based diet, they could use the few veggie heavy smoothie recipes ( yes there were a few) as the bulk of what they drink, w/ the wide selection of fruity recipes only as treats for some variety. There's an easy to follow explanation of the stages of CKD which would be helpful to new patients, families, or friends of the patient to get a basic quick understanding of why phosphorus, sodium, calcium, & diet are crucial. It's actually a fairly good book depending on how you look at it. It is a warning to healthy people to take care of their kidneys BEFORE it's too late & why our food choices matter so much while we still have a choice.