Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday for many people because it’s a time for family and friends to be together, plus all that great food. If you are following a special diet, like the kidney diet, you may find that holidays centered around eating are stressful.  You can refocus by planning some non-food related holiday events. How about some pre or post meal exercise such as walking, basketball, bonce ball, or a Wii activity? You can plan a time for guests to focus on what they are truly thankful and share with the family. Recalling great family stories is fun and a great way to hand down family history to the younger ones. Think about showing family videos, a photo slideshow or photos albums.

When it comes to destressing over holiday foods, time to stop worrying. The DaVita dietitians have created helpful, kidney-friendly eating guidelines to make your Thanksgiving eating easy.

Good to Eat Guidelines for Thanksgiving

• Soups made with low potassium ingredients and less or no salt
• Roast turkey, chicken, pork, or beef seasoned with pepper, thyme, Mrs. Dash herb seasoning blends other herbs
• Homemade gravy made with plain flour (not “self-rising”), less or no salt, and fat skimmed
• Cranberry sauce or juice (limit amount if diabetic)
• Stuffing/dressing made with homemade cornbread (plain meal, minimal baking powder, egg, liquid non-dairy creamer instead of milk) and/or bread cubes, sage, onion, celery, salt-free broth 
• Rice; mashed potatoes made from potatoes soaked to reduce potassium before cooking
• White loaf bread, yeast rolls, or hot water cornbread made with plain cornmeal
• Green beans, turnip greens (in moderation), corn, carrots, yellow squash, green beans, peas, cauliflower, broccoli, string beans, eggplant, peppers, cabbage, coleslaw, small green salad
• Pie or dessert made with apples or berries; chess pie (diabetics  please have a very small serving)
• Whipped topping  on dessert
• Sprite®, & 7Up®, or ginger ale (“diet” if diabetic or avoiding extra calories)
• Wine or liquor in moderation if OK with doctor / medications
• Tea, coffee, lemonade, Kool-Aid®

Best To  Avoid for Thanksgiving

(High in Phosphorus, Potassium or Salt / Sodium)

• Soups made with tomato or potato;  canned soups; salty soup
• Baked ham (very high in salt), Country ham (very, very high in salt)
• Canned or powdered gravies; Gravies made with vegetable cooking water (high potassium)
• Stove Top instant stuffing; Cornbread dressing made from cornmeal mix (high in salt and phosphorus)
• Dressings containing chestnuts, raisins, prunes (high in potassium) or giblets (high in phosphorus) 
• Macaroni and cheese made from mixes or with lots of cheese (if  eaten at all, make “homemade” with liquid non-dairy creamer instead of milk, no salt, and minimal cheese)
• Canned biscuits, biscuits and bread made from mixes or self-rising products (high in sodium and phosphorus)
• Tomato (if more than a slice), yams, sweet potatoes, acorn squash, baked or fried potatoes (high potassium–you can reduce by soaking potatoes and squash)
• Pumpkin pie (high potassium), pecan pie (high potassium, high phosphorus)
• Ice cream that exceeds daily milk allowance (high phosphorus and potassium)
• Coke®, Pepsi®, or other “cola” drinks, Hawaiian Punch® or other bottled or canned drinks with phosphate additives (high phosphorus)
• Beer (high phosphorus) 
• Hot chocolate;  milk in excess of milk allowance (high phosphorus and potassium)

For a complete Thanksgiving menu with kidney-friendly recipes DaVita.com’s feature article "A Feast for Giving Thanks" will provide everything you need to have a stress-free Thanksgiving meal.