Celebrity Chef Katie Lee Joel and Shire Pharmaceuticals announced on June 16 that Katie will be conducting a free cooking demonstration at Bongos Cuban Cafe in Miami, Fla. from 12 p.m. - 3 p.m. today, Saturday, June 16, for chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. During the demonstration, Katie will teach CKD patients and their family members how to cook recipes from Shire's 2007 edition of the cookbook Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods, Volume II. Event attendees will receive a complimentary copy of the cookbook, which also will be available for free after the event by visiting http://www.FOSRENOL.com or by calling (866) 896-6152.
Kidney disease is an issue close to Katie's heart, because her grandfather was a dialysis patient for several years. Although the family was worried about his health, her grandfather was more concerned with the restrictions it put on his diet. To help keep him healthy and happy, Katie and her grandmother adapted many of their family's traditional recipes so that Katie's grandfather and the rest of the family could still eat the meals that they loved together.
"I know how difficult managing kidney disease can be, which is why I was so excited to contribute my recipes to Shire's new edition of the Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods cookbook," said Katie. "Through this cookbook and today's demonstration, I want to show patients that cooking kidney- and diabetes-friendly foods is not a sentence to boring food, and that these tasty meals can be enjoyed by the entire family."
Katie will be joined tomorrow by Bongos Cuban Cafe's Executive Chef Rufino Rengifo and Renal Dietitian Marianne Hutton, who helped develop Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods, Volume II. In addition to demonstrating recipes from the cookbook, Katie and Rufino will show attendees how to cook kidney- and diabetes-friendly versions of two of Bongos Cuban Cafe's signature dishes, while Marianne will provide helpful dietary tips.
"I have had previous experience modifying recipes for individuals with certain health conditions, and was excited to work with Katie and Shire on this kidney-friendly cooking demonstration," said Rufino. "Although I adjusted our signature herb roasted pork loin and mashed roots to specifically address CKD patients' dietary requirements, the recipes remain both delicious and authentically Cuban."
Chronic kidney disease is a growing problem in the United States. In fact, approximately 20 million Americans have some form of kidney disease and almost 500,000 have developed CKD Stage 5 -- the most severe form of kidney disease -- and require dialysis. Approximately half of these patients also have diabetes, which is the leading cause of kidney failure in the United States.
It is important for people with CKD Stage 5 to follow a low phosphorus diet, because most dialysis patients will develop hyperphosphatemia (high serum phosphorus levels in the blood). Excess phosphorus in the blood can lead to serious long-term consequences for these patients, such as mineral deposits in the heart and blood vessels, bone disease and even death. Because phosphorus is found in so many foods, patients often cannot reach target blood phosphorus levels through dietary restriction and dialysis alone, and they generally treat hyperphosphatemia by taking phosphate binders, such as FOSRENOL(R), at meals and snacks. Phosphate binders "soak up" phosphorus in the gastrointestinal tract before it can be absorbed into the blood, thereby helping patients maintain target blood phosphorus levels.
"As part of our ongoing commitment to people with CKD Stage 5, Shire is developing several resources to help patients and their families overcome the challenges associated with following a kidney-friendly diet. Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods, Volume II and tomorrow's cooking demonstration are just two of many tools Shire is offering the CKD Stage 5 community this year to help patients better manage their health," said Matt Handel, Shire, Product General Manager, FOSRENOL(R) U.S.
Hyperphosphatemia is a difficult condition to treat because it requires patients to follow a special diet, attend dialysis sessions and comply with a prescribed binder therapy regimen that may require up to 12 pills a day. However, patients with hyperphosphatemia may be able to reduce their pill burden to as few as one tablet with each meal with treatments such as FOSRENOL(R). (Dosing based on as few as three tablets per day. Number of meals per day may vary. To achieve certain doses, additional tablets may be required.)
To obtain your free copy of the 2007 Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods,
Volume II: Eating Well for Chronic Kidney Disease Patients, Including Those
With Diabetes cookbook, please visit http://www.FOSRENOL.com or call (866)
896-6152. -Shire Pharmaceuticals
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