For our patients who are on the drug nitisinone, keeping to a low protein diet is very important. In this week’s blog we introduce you to a helpful website, where you can find a great low protein seasonal treat to make at home!
Adapting to Low Protein
Evidence so far shows that taking nitisinone reduces, or perhaps even prevents the build-up of homeogentistic acid (HGA) in the body. This is the acid which causes damage in AKU. However, like all drugs, there are other effects. Nitisinone causes the level of a different protein, tyrosine, to go up. If this protein level gets too high in the body, some side effects can occur, such as eye problems. To prevent this from happening, it is important for patients to stick to a low protein diet.
Adapting to a new diet can be difficult, and many patients can struggle at first. The first step is to get a few recipes under your belt. For many, getting started is the hardest part, but the diet soon becomes normal.
Although there are no websites which specifically give recipes for AKU, there are some websites which give clear protein values for their recipes. Carbs&Cals is a great website, which has a wide variety of different recipes, some of which are for low protein diets. Looking through the website may help you find some tasty new recipes.
Leftover Pumpkin?
If you have some pumpkin leftover from Halloween last week, you might want to try this tasty seasonal recipe from the Carbs&Cals website. Written by Anna Presswell as a guest blog, at just 2g of protein each, these tasty Spiced Pumpkin and Pecan Muffins with Cream Cheese Frosting could be a great treat!
What low protein recipes do you cook on a daily basis? Let us know and we will compile the best ones to share with everyone. You can email your best recipes to sorsha@akusociety.org.