BEWARE! CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE , A SILENT KILLER ON THE LOOSE
About ten percent of the adult population worldwide have some form of kidney disease. Every year millions of people worldwide die prematurely because of the complications related to Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), mainly due to cardiovascular diseases.
Worldwide, CKD is an important public health problem that is closely linked to other major non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease and increase the likelihood of adverse outcome and high cost of of health care.
In the Philippines, kidney diseases rank number 10 among the leading causes of death based on the Department of health statistics for the past several years.
CKD is progressive loss in kidney function over a period of months to years. Each of our two kidneys has about a million tiny filters, called nephrons. If nephrons are damaged, it stops working. Meantime, the healthy nephrons can take on the extra work but if the damage continues, more and more nephrons shuts down. After a certain point, the nephrons that are left can not filter your blood sufficiently to keep you healthy.
Based on Philippine Renal Registry of the DOH REDCOP and PSN. There are 18,868 patients on dialysis treatment in 2012. There are 12,122 new patients nationwide who started on dialysis in 2012. This number of new patients starting on Dialysis has been increasing by more than ten percent every year for the past ten years! There are 342 patients who had kidney transplantation in 2012.
Among the top 3 leading causes of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) in the Philippines are: Diabetes Mellitus, Hypertension and CKD.
Practical Suggestions in Preventing Kidney Disease:
- Keeping fit and active.
- Control and manage blood sugar level.
- Control and manage blood pressure level.
- Eat balance and healthy diet and keep your in check and manageable.
- Adequate fluid intake.
- Do not smoke.
- Check your kidney function if you any of the high risk factors.
- Diabetes mellitus
- Hypertension
- Obesity
- Family members with kidney disease.
- Consult experts when taking drugs and supplements.
- If all the above fails and you can’t sleep stop counting the sheep and talk to the SHEPHERD and pray.