Renal Dietitian

Experience as a Renal Dietitian

For over a decade Katie has worked with hundreds of people with kidney disease in both clinical (Katie held the Senior Renal Dietitian position at one of Perth's leading tertiary hospitals for several years) and private practice setting. Katie provides the highest quality education on choosing the right foods to consume to optimise chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Katie has managed patients with a wide variety of acute and chronic kidney disease, including but not limited to; Polycystic Kidney Disease (PCKD), Lupus nephritis, diabetic nephropathy (CKD caused by diabetes), kidney stones, hypertensive nephropathy, FSGS, nephrotic syndrome, IgA nephropathy, aHUS, cystinosis, Minimal change disease, Glomerular disease, Fabry disease.

Katie's experience in renal dietetics is comprehensive. As well as completing her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Diploma in Dietetics and graduating as an Accredited Practising Dietitian, Katie has completed the advanced Renal Nutrition Program . Katie has also published several articles on renal nutrition and presented at numerous national and international conferences such as at the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology (ANZSN) annual conference and the Renal Society of Australasia (RSA) information nights.

Katie is the chair of the Dietitians Association of Western Australian’s Kidney Dietitians Interest Group. As the state convenor, she organises meeting with other renal dietitians across WA and meets regularly with other renal dietitians at a national level.

Katie is passionate about helping people with kidney disease to live better lives.

The Renal Diet

It is important to know there is no standard “renal diet”; it depends on several factors such as your age, weight, stage of CKD, treatment mode and blood results.

There is a lot of misinformation on the internet about the best foods to consume for your kidneys and a lot of lengthy lists of foods that are “harmful” for your kidneys and must be avoided. This can lead to an overly restricted diet that is not nutritionally complete and can cause a level of stress and fear around eating. We can equip you with the knowledge and tools you need to navigate a lot of the misinformation out there. With our support and guidance, you will be able to eat a balanced and varied diet that is not overly restrictive.

Dialysis

If you are undergoing dialysis (haemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis), our Dietitians can provide education around the best diet to follow to improve health outcomes, assist with weight control and manage symptoms such as nausea, poor appetite, dry mouth.

Certain nutrients such as folate and amino acids are lost during dialysis, so it is important to ensure you are eating adequate amounts of these nutrients.

Healthy Eating Recipes

Our Dietitians understand that cooking for someone with CKD can be hard. We can provide delicious and kidney-friendly recipes tailored to your nutritional needs and food preferences. If you would like an individualised meal plan, you can add that on when booking or ask about it during your appointment.

A cucumber sliced into several rounds and a whole cucumber with dark green skin on a white surface.

FAQs

  • Our Dietitians will gather information about your individual characteristics such as your stage of CKD, pathology results (please bring along if you have), medical history and your current dietary intake.

    With this information, we will determine the best foods and dietary regime for you to help preserve your renal function. Depending on your situation, she may also discuss dietary strategies to control high blood pressure or improve your glycaemic control if you have diabetes and provide guidance on how much to drink each day and which fluids to preference. We have a holistic approach to care and can (subject to your consent) collaborate with your doctors and other health professionals that are part of your team.

    In our clinic, we offer renal friendly recipes, dietitian approved meal plans, education around label reading and suggestions of meal and snack alternatives. You will learn what you can eat and not simply what you can't.

  • Be wary of anybody selling diets that claim to reverse your renal failure. Working with a specialist renal dietitian can lead to mild improvements in your eGFR and can slow disease progression but there are no magic pills or health supplements that can help restore your renal function entirely.

  • Whether or not you need to limit phosphate depends on your biochemistry results and you stage of CKD.

    Most of the time, phosphate naturally found in food is not well absorbed by the body (approximately 20-40% is absorbed) whereas phosphate additives are readily absorbed (over 90% of is absorbed). As such, it is important to limit products with phosphate additives as this will have the greatest impact on your phosphate levels.

    If you do need to follow a low phosphate diet, we can help you identify the products to avoid.