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YOUR KIDNEYS WORK HARD
every day doing the
vital job of keeping your blood clean.
But having diabetes can overburden your kidneys,
putting you at risk for chronic kidney disease—a condi-
tion that damages the kidneys and reduces their ability
to filter blood.
Over time, the damage can worsen and lead to kidney
failure and a need for dialysis.
Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure,
accounting for nearly 44 percent of new cases a year, ac-
cording to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
and Kidney Diseases.
But diabetes isn’t the only cause of kidney problems.
The other major cause is high blood pressure, which often
goes hand in hand with diabetes.
WHAT CAN GO WRONG
Your kidneys each contain
millions of blood vessels that act as filters for your
blood. The waste products these filters remove leave
the body as urine, while protein and other needed
Early detection is key
You could have kidney disease for
years before you feel any symptoms.
By then, the damage may be severe—
and kidney failure may be near.
However, when kidney damage is
discovered early, treatments can help
slow the disease. That’s why getting
tested regularly for kidney disease is
so important if you have risk factors
such as diabetes.
Tests for kidney disease include:
■
■
A test that measures the amount
of creatinine (a waste product) in the
blood. The result—along with your age,
sex and other factors—is used to help
calculate your glomerular filtration
rate, or how much blood your kidneys
filter per minute. Your GFR helps show
whether you have kidney disease and
how well your kidneys are working.
■
■
A urine test that looks for a type of
protein called albumin, which can leak
into the urine from damaged kidneys.
The amount may be compared with the
creatinine level in your urine to help
determine if you have kidney disease.
Source: National Institutes of Health
DIABETES:
STOP IT EARLY
WHAT IF YOU KNEW
you were on track to develop
diabetes in the not-so-distant future? Would you seize
the opportunity to make some changes that can help
prevent the disease?
Millions of Americans can do just that and put a posi-
tive spin on a diagnosis of prediabetes—a condition in
which blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not
yet high enough to be full-blown diabetes.
When a person has prediabetes, he or she is on course
to get Type 2 diabetes within a decade, reports the Na-
tional Institutes of Health.
But that outcome isn’t inevitable. Studies also show
that people who have prediabetes can get their blood
sugar under control and lower their risk of diabetes
significantly.
THERE’S HELP
“The DCH Diabetes Center is available
to help persons with prediabetes and diabetes understand
how to maintain better health through diet and lifestyle,”
said Debrah Fisher, DCH Diabetes Center Manager.
“The DCH Diabetes Center teaches prevention, car-
bohydrate counting and exercise, for example for people
who are borderline and do not have diabetes yet to help
them delay or perhaps prevent developing diabetes.”
A DCH Diabetes Center dietitian or diabetes educator
can help you with meal planning and teach you how to
make smart food choices. Carbohydrate-counting books
and cookbooks that list the amount of carbohydrates in
recipes can also help, as can learning how to read food
labels.
WHO’S AT RISK?
Diabetes is a serious disease. Over
time it can lead to life-altering problems, such as blind-
ness and amputations, as well as life-threatening ones,
such as heart disease and stroke.
That’s why it’s important to know if you have pre-
diabetes so that you can take steps to lower your risk of
developing Type 2 diabetes.
Since you could have prediabetes and feel fine,
your physician may test you for the condition if
you’re older than 45 or—regardless of your age—if you’re
overweight and have other risk factors, such as:
●
High
blood pressure.
●
A family history of diabetes.
●
A
personal history of diabetes during pregnancy.
The cost of services at the DCH Diabetes Center
is covered by Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield
and most other hea l th insurance pl ans . The
prediabetes class is not covered by insurance. The two-
hour class, taught by a diabetes educator, currently
costs $50.
To schedule an appointment, simply request a
referral from your physician. Call
205-750-5260
for
more information or go to
www.dchsystem.com/diabetes
.
substances are returned to the bloodstream.
After many years, high blood sugar or high blood pres-
sure can damage the kidneys’ filters. When that happens,
protein leaks into the urine and waste products collect
in the blood.
Eventually the kidneys may stop working altogether
(kidney failure), at which time the only treatments are
dialysis—in which a machine is used to filter the blood—
or a kidney transplant.
PROTECT YOUR KIDNEYS
Fortunately, many of the
same steps that can help prevent kidney disease can help
slow its progress if the disease is found early, reports the
NIDDK. So it’s important to be tested for the condition.
Here are some ways to help prevent or treat kidney
disease:
●
●
Control blood sugar and blood pressure.
Keeping
blood sugar levels near normal may help cut the risk of
kidney disease by as much as one-third, the American
Diabetes Association reports. Work with your physician
to meet your target goals.
You should also
strive to keep your blood pressure
below 130/80 mm Hg. Have it checked often. Exercising,
reducing your intake of salt and controlling your weight
are some lifestyle changes that can help reduce blood
pressure.
●
●
Take medicines as directed.
Blood pressure drugs
called ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers
(ARBs) can slow kidney disease. Your physician may
recommend them to lower blood pressure and to help
preserve your kidney function, according to the NIDDK.
●
●
Seek dietary advice.
To help treat kidney disease,
your physician may suggest reducing how much pro-
tein you eat, which may take some of the workload off
your kidneys.
Remember, having diabetes increases your risk of
developing kidney disease. But there’s a lot you can do
to help protect your kidneys.
To learn more about diabetes and kidney disease,
go to
www.niddk.nih.gov
.
KIDNEY DISEASE
DIABETES RAISES YOUR RISK
Your kidneys need special care when you have diabetes
Many of the same steps that
can help prevent kidney disease
can help slow its progress if
the disease is found early.
W I N T E R 2 0 1 2
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H E A L T H Y C O M M U N I T Y
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