Today, one in three American adults is at risk of kidney disease. In fact, the National Kidney Foundation reports that 26 million Americans have kidney disease and most don’t even know it.
How can that be?
Unlike many other ailments, kidney disease often has no symptoms until it is advanced. Second, most cases of kidney disease in America are caused by diabetes or high blood pressure—or both at the same time. In fact, these two health problems cause 70 percent of all kidney failure in America, according to the Medical Education Institute.
In America, 29 million people have diabetes, with another 8.1 million undiagnosed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Add to that the 75 million American adults with high blood pressure and the alarm bells about kidney disease become clear. Keeping your blood sugar and blood pressure under control can help to keep your whole body healthy.
Other kidney disease risk factors
In addition to diabetes and high blood pressure, a family history of kidney failure and being 60 or older put a person at high risk. Other risk factors include obesity, autoimmune diseases, urinary tract infections, systemic infections, and kidney loss, damage, injury, or infection.
Check your risk right now
One way to check your risk of kidney disease right now is to take the National Kidney Foundation’s Quick Kidney Risk Check and find out where you fall on the risk scale and what steps you can take to reduce your risk.
Ask your doctor
If you have the leading risk factors, talk to your doctor about simple tests that can tell if you have kidney disease.
- An ACR urine test to see how much of a certain type of protein—albumin—is in your urine (too much is an early sign of kidney damage)
- A GFR blood test that measures kidney function by testing how well your kidneys remove waste from your blood
How does high blood pressure affect kidneys?
The kidneys and circulatory system depend on each other. Kidneys filter wastes and extra fluids from blood. When blood vessels are damaged, that process functions poorly. Over time, according to the American Heart Association, uncontrolled high blood pressure narrows arteries around the kidneys and prevents them from delivering enough blood to the kidney tissue.
How does diabetes affect kidneys?
Increased blood sugar levels in people with diabetes can cause an increase in some chemicals in the kidneys. That can cause the kidney’s filtering mechanism to leak protein into the urine, and some of the proteins may link together. That can trigger scarring in the kidneys, which over time takes over healthy kidney tissue and prevents the kidneys from filtering the blood.
How you can help prevent kidney disease
- Keep your blood pressure under control
- If you’re diabetic or at risk, improve your diet and lifestyle with your doctor’s help
- Quit smoking
- Limit your alcohol intake
- If you’re overweight, lose weight
- Follow a healthy diet
- Reduce the amount of salt in your diet
- Exercise
- Limit your use of ibuprofen and naproxen
If you have risk factors, your best bet for avoiding kidney disease is to keep your other ailments, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, under control.
Helpful Links:
Learn more about the interconnection between these diseases
High Blood Pressure and Kidney Disease