March is National Kidney Month

You probably haven't thought about your kidneys lately--that is, unless you have a problem with them. So what's the big deal about kidneys, you ask.

Your kidneys filter your blood and remove some waste products from your body as well as excess fluid. These are the most familiar functions of kidneys to most folks. But that's not all...

• Kidneys have some control over your blood pressure
• Kidneys balance the fluids and electrolytes in your body
• Kidneys produce active vitamin D to help keep your bones healthy
• Kidneys help in producing red blood cells--the ones that carry oxygen to all the cells of your body

One in nine Americans has chronic kidney disease, meaning their kidneys don't work as well as they should. These folks feel sick because waste products and excess water aren't being filtered out. They may have high blood pressure, weakened bones, or anemia. They are at higher risk to develop heart disease. If chronic kidney disease isn't diagnosed early and treated, the kidneys can fail so that a person has to have dialysis or a kidney transplant to stay alive.

Dialysis means that your blood has to be filtered in some other way. The most common is to spend four hours a day, three days a week, connected to a dialysis machine. I've personally known a lot of people on dialysis, and for many of them, it's not very pleasant. They cope with upset stomachs, blood pressure problems, fatigue, trouble sleeping, and itching. They have to severely limit how much liquid they drink and the kinds of food they eat.

Kidney transplant is another way to treat kidney failure. Right now there are more than 70,000 Americans on the national waiting list to receive a kidney transplant. If a person has a relative or friend who is willing to donate a kidney to them, they must be healthy and matched with them in several ways. This donor can function with one kidney but may run some risks to his/her health. Kidney transplant patients take a number of medicines, mostly with side effects, for as long as their transplanted kidney continues to function. There are increased problems related to infection and cancer that go along with kidney transplant.

So doesn't it make sense to take good care of your kidneys?

Some people are more likely to develop chronic kidney disease. These include:

• Diabetics
• People with high blood pressure
• Older people
• People with a family history of kidney disease

If you're in one or more of these categories, talk to your doctor. There are some simple tests to check how well your kidneys are functioning. Work with your doctor to keep your diabetes and/or high blood pressure under good control.

For everyone--you may have kidney disease and have no symptoms at all. The earlier your doctor finds the problem, the more likely that something can be done about it.

For more information, here are some helpful websites:

http://www.kidney.org/kidneyDisease National Kidney Foundation website.

http://www.nkdep.nih.gov/resources/kidney_problems.htm National Kidney Disease Education Program home page

http://www.transplantliving.org Organ donation and transplant information for patients and families.

Copyright © 2007 Jane Benjey