Why Supplements? - How Diabetes Affects The Kidneys

If you are a diabetic, do you know that how you manage your diabetes properly can prevent or slow down kidney disease (renal problem)? If you can manage your diabetes well, you will save your kidneys.

The kidneys function to cleanse blood from waste products and excess fluid by filtering blood to produce urine. When the kidneys are unable to filter normally, dangerous accumulation of fluid and wastes occurs in the body which eventually results in kidney failure.

Diabetes Mellitus is a condition where there is insufficient insulin produced by the pancreas or the body is unable to respond to the insulin normally. Blood glucose levels will then rise and cause damage to organs including the kidneys.

Almost all insulin-dependent diabetics have some kidney damage but for most, it does not cause symptoms or problems. The younger the age, the longer the duration, and the less you control your sugar intake, the more likely you are to have diabetic kidney problems. It usually takes 10 to 20 years for diabetic patients with kidney disease to develop kidney failure. You may say that this is a big window of opportunity for kidney failure to be prevented but sad to say, in many instances, diabetes has already been present many years before it is detected, and organ damage may already exist at the time of diagnosis.

Always take the time to seek professional help in diabetes management. Managing your diabetes well can prevent or slow down the progress of your kidney disease, especially if your diabetes was detected early.

Achieve and maintain your targeted blood glucose and blood pressure. High levels of these are the main factors that contribute to kidney damage. Patients with diabetes and kidney disease are at an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes, so it is also important to achieve good control of lipid levels, exercise and control weight, as well as stop unhealthy habits such as smoking. The following shows the targets to achieve:

• Blood glucose should maintain at 4.0mmol/L to 6.0 mmol/L (fasting); and less than 7-8 mmol/LL after food. Blood pressure maintains at 130/80 mmHg or lower
• HbA1c: Less than or equal to 6.5%
• LDL Cholesterol: Less than 2.6 mmol/L
• HDL Cholesterol: More than 1.02 mmol/L
• Triglycerides: Less than 1.7 mmol/L
• Blood Pressure: 130/80 mmHg or lower

Don't ever default on your follow-ups visits to the doctor as it can lead to further deterioration of your diabetes and diabetic complications, which include kidney disease. The problem is that complications such as diabetic eye and kidney disease are usually silent until in advanced stages.Because of this lack of early physical signs and symptoms, it is even more important that your visits to your doctor would enable him to monitor your condition and help you control the disease. To screen for kidney complications, the doctor only needs to check your blood pressure and do some simple urine and blood tests. REMEMBER: diabetes has the potential to damage many different organs in your body, not just the kidneys. Regular follow-up helps to protect your heart and blood vessels, brain and nerves, eyes and skin also.

If you are diabetic, you need to watch your diet. Control your carbohydrate and fat intake as well as protein, sodium, potassium and phosphorus. If you already have kidney damage due to diabetes, controlling what you eat can avoid excessive build-up of wastes in your kidneys since they are not able to function normally.

Chronic kidney disease and diabetes are common and harmful due to our unhealthy lifestyle. However, most importantly, they are treatable, especially when detected early or if you are in a pre-diabetic. It is important for you to work together with your doctor to prevent or manage diabetes appropriately.