Eating right is the key in managing kidney disease and your overall health.

Here are some tips:

1. Choose and prepare foods with less salt and sodium
To help your kidneys control your blood pressure, your diet should contain less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium each day.

2. Eat the right amount and the right types of protein
Your kidneys remove the waste produced when your body uses protein. Eating more protein will make your kidneys work harder. Eat small portions of protein foods. Animal-protein foods are chicken, fish, meat, eggs and dairy. Plant-protein foods are beans, nuts and grains.

3. Choose foods that are healthy for your heart.
This will help keep fat from building up in your blood vessels, heart, and kidneys. Heart-healthy foods include lean cuts of meat, such as loin or round; poultry without the skin; fish, beans, vegetables, fruits and low-fat or fat-free milk, yogurt, and cheese.

Also consider the following manner of preparing your food.

• Grill, broil, bake, roast, or stir-fry foods, instead of deep frying.
• Cook with nonstick cooking spray or a small amount of olive oil instead of butter
• Trim fat from meat and remove skin from poultry before eating.
• Try to limit saturated and trans fats. Read the food label.

4. Limit foods and drinks with phosphorus
When you have chronic kidney disease (CKD), phosphorus can build up in your blood. Too much phosphorus in your blood pulls calcium from your bones, making them thin, weak and more likely to break; it can also cause itchy skin, and bone and joint pain. Foods high in phosphorus include chicken, turkey, pork, organ meats, seafood, dairy, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, nuts, whole grains, quinoa and amaranth, beans and lentils, soy.

5. Choose foods with the right amount of potassium
Potassium helps your nerves and muscles work the right way but damaged kidneys allow potassium to build up in your blood, which can cause serious heart problems. Salt substitutes can be very high in potassium. Read ingredient labels first. Also, drain canned fruits and vegetables before eating.

Foods low on potassium include apples, peaches, carrots, green beans, white bread and pasta, white rice, rice milk (not enriched), cooked rice and wheat cereals. Foods high in potassium include oranges, bananas, potatoes, tomatoes, brown and wild rice, bran cereals, dairy foods, whole-wheat bread and pasta, beans and nuts.

Some medicines may elevate potassium levels. Check with your healthcare provider.