Love your Kidneys Newsletter December 2010

Top 10 Things to Know About Urinary Tract Infections

With the holidays fast approaching, lots of folks have cranberries on their minds--and in their kitchens. What many may not know, however, is that cranberries can be more than just another side dish on the dinner table. They actually contain compounds that can help prevent recurring urinary tract infections (UTIs).

UTIs are common, painful and often treatable bacterial infections of the bladder that send nearly 10 million people, most of them women, to the doctor every year. But there are steps you can take to prevent and treat these infections. As part of a new educational partnership, the National Kidney Foundation and the Cranberry Marketing Committee have compiled a list of the top 10 most important facts about UTIs.


Stuff their Stockings with the Adorable Love Your Kidneys Teddy Bear

Instead of stuffing the kids' stockings with candy and plastic toys this year, why not mix it up with the cuddly Love Your Kidneys teddy bear? This soft stuffed friend-in-waiting may win the best stocking stuffer award. Go to www.kidney.org/store and use code LYK12 at checkout to receive a 25% discount on this item and everything else in the NKF store.


(l-r) Claire and Mara

Sisters Share Gift of Life for Nearly 40 Years

Claire McRae can't skydive or play tackle football, but 37 years after her sister, Mara, donated a kidney to save her life, there's not much she hasn't tried. An executive producer at CNN who started as a tape logger, Claire has produced Larry King Live, Inside Politics with Judy Woodruff and Bernard Shaw and is currently executive producer for Fredricka Whitfield.


New Tool Helps Predict Success of Kidney Transplants

A few simple questions can help patients and their doctors predict whether a kidney transplant from a deceased donor will succeed long-term, according to new research published in American Journal of Kidney Diseases, the official journal of the National Kidney Foundation.


An Easy Holiday Dessert that Won't Pack on the Pounds

Although you may feel like you're running a marathon this holiday season as you sprint from the shopping mall to the grocery store, the scale in the bathroom may say otherwise. This month's chocolate pineapple trifle dish from the NKF's Kidney Kitchen will satisfy your holiday sweet tooth and ease the stress of your post-holiday weigh in.