The main treatment for PKU is a low-protein diet that completely avoids high-protein foods (such as meat, eggs and dairy products) and controls the intake of many other foods, such as potatoes and cereals.
What foods do not contain phenylalanine?
What is Included in a Low Phenylalanine Food Pattern? The diet for PKU consists of a phenylalanine-free medical formula and carefully measured amounts of fruits, vegetables, bread, pasta, and cereals. Many people who follow a low phenylalanine (phe) food pattern eat special low protein breads and pastas.
What breakfast foods are low in protein?
Ideas include:
- Measured quantities of cereal with low protein milk plus chopped fruit or berries on top.
- Gluten-free bagel (GF products are often lower in protein so check the protein content) with fried mushrooms / tinned tomatoes.
- Low protein toast with cream cheese (mini Philadelphia tubs are 2.5 g protein)
What does a phenylalanine free diet look like?
Foods such as meat, fish, eggs, milk, cheese, nuts and pulses are excluded as they contain high levels of phenylalanine. Vegetables and fruit are allowed in measured amounts only! Special low protein bread, pasta, biscuits and flour are used to supplement the diet and ensure adequate calorie intake.
What do you eat with PKU? – Related Questions
What sweets can you eat with PKU?
- Fudge, Toffee & Turkish Delight.
- Marshmallows & Waggon Wheels.
- Snack & Energy Bars.
- Sweets, Jellies, Liqourice & Gum.
How long do people with PKU live?
PKU does not shorten life expectancy, with or without treatment. Newborn screening for PKU is required in all 50 states. PKU is usually identified by newborn screening. A child’s outlook is very good if she strictly follows the diet.
Are eggs high in phenylalanine?
Munks et al. (4) found 5.8 per cent phenylalanine and 4.8 per cent tyrosine in the protein of whole eggs.
What food has the most phenylalanine?
Foods high in phenylalanine
- Meat: beef, pork, lamb, venison.
- Poultry: chicken, turkey, duck, goose.
- Seafood: salmon, trout, tuna, mackerel, shrimp, lobster.
- Eggs: whole eggs, egg whites.
- Dairy: milk, cheese, yogurt.
- Nuts: almonds, pistachios, macadamia nuts, cashews, walnuts.
What are the symptoms of phenylalanine?
Symptoms
- A musty odor in the breath, skin or urine, caused by too much phenylalanine in the body.
- Nervous system (neurological) problems that may include seizures.
- Skin rashes, such as eczema.
Can you live without phenylalanine?
Phenylalanine is essential to building chemicals like dopamine and epinephrine that the brain and body needs to function normally. But, the inability to break down phenylalanine can cause the amino acid to build up, leading to behavioral problems, intellectual disabilities, and even seizures.
Can you drink alcohol with PKU?
The effect of drinking alcohol is the same for individuals with or without PKU. Alcohol, in any amount, can affect your body in some form. It can change the way your brain processes information and affects your ability to make decisions.
How rare is PKU?
In the United States, PKU occurs in 1 in 10,000 to 15,000 newborns. Most cases of PKU are detected shortly after birth by newborn screening, and treatment is started promptly. As a result, the severe signs and symptoms of classic PKU are rarely seen.
How much protein can someone with PKU have?
In most people with PKU, the natural protein or dietary phenylalanine is restricted to 25% or less of a regular intake to maintain blood phenylalanine concentrations within European PKU Guidelines target ranges [1].
Does PKU qualify as a disability?
In order to qualify for Social Security Disability benefits due to a diagnosis of phenylketonuria, you must be able to prove that your condition prevents you from performing any type of substantial gainful work activity.
Does PKU cause weight gain?
Thus, PKU patients tend to consume a diet enriched in carbohydrates which could predispose to obesity. Studies in the 1980s and 1990s demonstrated that school-age phenylketonuria (PKU) patients have a higher mean body weight compared to a control population.
Can people with PKU drink milk?
Because the amount of phenylalanine that a person with PKU can safely eat is so low, it’s important to avoid all high-protein foods, such as: Milk.
Can PKU have ice cream?
Children and adults with PKU have to eat small amounts of Phe and they cannot eat meats, dairy, eggs, beans or nuts. Someone with PKU cannot eat pizza, birthday cake, regular bread, yogurt, cheese, ice cream, chocolate, hot dogs, hamburgers, or turkey on Thanksgiving!
Can people with PKU have coffee?
Water, squash, lemonade, cola drinks, fruit juice, black tea, fruit tea, green tea, coffee, tonic water, soda water and mineral water are all permitted providing they are aspartame free.