Global prospectus of Diabetes
Diabetes is a slowly progressive disease that is characterized by elevated levels of glucose in the blood, which has a serious impact on various organs like the heart, eyes, kidneys, and nerves.
According to a report published by WHO, there are around 423 million diabetes patients globally, and this will go up to 700 million by the end of 2025. This data itself is shocking enough to depict how dangerously this disease is spreading worldwide.
Diabetes is the primary cause of kidney damage. Diabetic nephropathy affects the kidney’s ability to function appropriately and hampers the process of removing waste and additional fluid from the blood. Over many years, Diabetes slowly deteriorates the kidneys. Early treatment can prevent or slow down the progress of further damage to the kidneys.
In this article, we try to cover how diabetes affects your kidneys. Read this content till the end:
- What is Diabetes?
- How does diabetes cause kidney disease?
- What are the symptoms of diabetic kidney disease?
- How can we prevent diabetic kidney disease?
- What can be the complications?
- When to see a doctor
- Treatments for kidney disease
. Self-care
. Drugs
. Diet - Kidney failure
- Conclusion
What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is basically when your body cannot make required insulin or cannot utilize insulin properly. Insulin is a hormone that is responsible for controlling how much sugar is in your blood. A high sugar level in your blood can hamper many parts of your body, including your heart, kidneys, eyes, and brain. After a certain period, this can result in kidney disease and kidney failure.
Diabetes is classified into two types. Type 1 diabetes generally begins when people are young. In this situation, the body doesn’t make sufficient insulin. Type 2 diabetes is generally found in grown-ups more than 40. However, it is turning out to be more regular in more younger individuals. It is generally connected with being overweight and tends to run in families. In type 2 diabetes, the body produces insulin yet can’t utilize it well.
How does Diabetes Cause Kidney Disease?
Our bodies process the protein that we eat, and the process produces waste products. There are many tiny vessels biologically known as capillaries in the kidneys, and smaller openings are known as filters. As blood moves through the veins, byproducts squeeze through these small openings. These byproducts become part of the urine. Valuable substances, like protein and red blood cells, are more significant in size, and the filters don’t allow them to pass, and they stay in the blood.
Diabetes can hamper this system of filtration. High sugar levels make the kidneys filter to get damage, which is difficult for the filters. These filters begin to leak throughout some undefined time frame, and helpful protein is lost in the urine.
When kidney disease is diagnosed, during microalbuminuria(small measures of protein), specific treatments might hold the kidney to get worse. Having a more significant amount of protein in the urine is called macroalbuminuria. It usually follows when the kidney disease is looked up during macroalbuminuria, end-stage renal sickness, or ESRD.
Meanwhile, the burden of overwork causes the kidneys to lose their filtering ability. Waste products then accumulate in the blood. Finally, the kidneys fail. This failure, ESRD, is severe. A person suffering from ESRD will need to have a kidney transplant or dialysis.
What are the symptoms of diabetic kidney disease?
The signs and symptoms may not be visible in the early phase, but in the later stage, the symptoms may include:
- Unbalanced blood pressure control
- Loss of protein in the urine
- Swollen legs and ankles
- Breathing issues
- Loss of appetite
- Weakness
- Vomiting
- Fatigue
- Continuous itching in the body
How can we prevent diabetic kidney disease?
To prevent diabetic kidney disease:
1)Take treatment for Diabetes: An effective treatment of Diabetes is necessary to prevent kidney disease.
2) High blood pressure or other medical conditions should be managed: If someone has high blood pressure or other medical conditions, then you should consult with your doctor to control them.
3) Maintain a healthy body weight: Regular exercise will help to maintain a healthy body weight. Unhealthy body weight will invite several medical conditions.
4) Quit smoking: If someone is habitual of smoking, it’s better to quit smoking as it allows many toxins to enter the body and damage the kidneys.
What can be the complications?
The complications of diabetic kidney disease may be seen over months or years.
They may include:
1) Swelling in arms and legs, fluid in your lungs due to water retention in the body.
2) The level of potassium rises, which is known as hyperkalemia.
3) Cardiovascular and blood vessel disease that may result in a stroke.
4) Anemia
5) Severe damage to kidneys, eventually needing either dialysis or kidney transplant to survive.
When to see a doctor
Consulting a doctor depends on the condition that you are facing. Make an appointment with your doctor if you face any signs or symptoms of kidney disease. If you have Diabetes, then yearly urine tests are highly recommended to detect your blood’s protein and creatinine levels. These tests further determine how well the kidneys are functioning.
Treatments for kidney disease
Self-care
Essential treatments for kidney disease are tight control of and blood pressure. Blood pressure has a dramatic effect on the rate at which the disease progresses. Even a mild rise in blood pressure can quickly make kidney disease worsen. Specific ways to lower your blood pressure are losing weight, eating less salty food, avoiding alcohol and tobacco, and exercising regularly.
Drugs
When these strategies fizzle, certain drugs might have the option to bring down blood pressure. There are a few kinds of blood pressure drugs. In any case, not all are similarly useful for individuals with Diabetes. Some raise blood glucose levels or cover a portion of the indications of low blood glucose. For the most part, specialists lean toward individuals with Diabetes taking blood pressure drugs called ACE inhibitors.
ACE inhibitors are suggested for the vast majority with Diabetes, hypertension, and kidney disease. Recent studies recommend that ACE inhibitors, which incorporate captopril and enalapril, slow kidney infection and bring down blood pressure. Indeed, these medications are useful even in individuals who don’t have hypertension.
Diet
Another treatment a few specialists use with macroalbuminuria is a low-protein diet. Protein appears to build how hard the kidneys should function. A low-protein diet can diminish protein loss in the urine and increase protein levels in the blood. Never start a low-protein diet without conversing with your medical care group.
Kidney failure
If kidneys fail, dialysis is necessary. The person must choose whether to continue with dialysis or to get a kidney transplant.
Conclusion
Diabetes is a slowly occurring disease that can hamper the kidney over some time. It’s highly recommended to control Diabetes to prevent chronic kidney disease because if it is not cured on time then it can be life-threatening
