Protect your kidneys from life’s hard punches | GUEST COMMENTARY

Published 12:40 pm Friday, March 20, 2015

March is National Kidney Month, a time to think about two amazing organs that could fit into the palm of each hand.

Kidneys keep our bodies in balance. They constantly filter wastes from our blood, remove excess fluid via urine, and produce hormones that keep hearts healthy, bones strong and blood full of oxygen-carrying red cells.

More than 10 percent of American adults have chronic kidney disease, and many of them would be surprised to know it. That’s because kidney disease usually does damage without symptoms until the consequences become severe and impossible to reverse.

But knowledge is power. Finding out early that you have kidney disease means that you can change your lifestyle and get medications that will slow or stop the damage.

Talk with your doctor and get tested if you are at risk. That would be true if: you have diabetes or high blood pressure, the leading causes of kidney disease; you have a relative with kidney disease; you are overweight; you’re over age 60; you are of African, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American or Hispanic descent.

The tests are simple and inexpensive: a blood test, urinalysis and blood pressure measurement.

Here are some ways to be kind to your kidneys and keep them healthy:

1. If you are at risk for kidney disease, talk with your doctor and get tested.

2. Monitor your blood pressure. If it’s higher than 140/90, talk with your doctor about how to treat it.

3. Watch your blood sugar. About half of diabetes patients end up with kidney disease. Also manage your cholesterol.

4. Improve your diet. In particular, cut back on processed and restaurant foods. They are full of salt, an enemy of healthy kidneys. Find great recipes at http://www.nwkidney.org.

5. Be cautious with over-the-counter pain medications such as ibuprofen. Large doses over a long time can damage the kidneys.

6. Keep active to stay fit and manage your weight. Lifestyle changes can keep you healthy and, if you have kidney damage, good health habits can keep it from getting worse.

For people whose kidney disease has progressed to total kidney failure, Northwest Kidney Centers provides dialysis and paves the way for kidney transplants.

But we would much prefer to help people avoid the need for our services.

Find more information about kidney disease prevention and treatment at www.nwkidney.org.

Joyce F. Jackson is president and CEO of Northwest Kidney Centers, a regional, not-for-profit, locally run provider of kidney dialysis, public health education and research into the causes and treatments of chronic kidney disease. Northwest Kidney Centers runs 15 dialysis clinics, including one in Renton.