Did you know that 1 in 3 Americans are at risk for chronic kidney disease!? I had no idea. What is worse is that 90% of those affected don’t even know they have it. With early diagnosis and treatment, kidney disease can be treated. Currently, kidney disease is the 9th leading cause of death in the USA, it causes more deaths than breast cancer or prostate cancer!
This content is sponsored by Magic Bullet Media.
Please help me spread the word about kidney disease this month during National Kidney Disease Prevention Month and spread the word about the desperate need for living donors now and next month during National Donate Life Month. Who knows, maybe we can each make a difference in someone’s life, maybe our own.
Catch Kidney Disease Early
Catching kidney disease early is the key and it is as simple as requesting a simple blood test each year during your annual checkup. Remember, kidney disease affects people of all ages, so get your kids checked too.
Not sure what kidney disease it? It is basically when your kidneys become damaged and don’t filter blood properly. This can lead to a build-up of waste in your body.
What makes kidney disease tricky is that you may have it WITHOUT any signs of symptoms, that is why 90% of people don’t even know they have it. You might not see the signs until it has advanced to the point in which you go into kidney failure or end-stage renal disease.
If you are experiencing any of these signs, you may have advanced kidney disease, it is important to contact your doctor right away.
• Swollen ankles, feet, and hands
• Fatigue or weakness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Decrease in appetite
• Nauseousness
• Blood in urine or foamy urine
• Change in frequency of urination
The treatment for kidney failure is dialysis or a kidney transplant.
People at higher risk for kidney disease include those with diabetes and high blood pressure. Kidney disease may be prevented or slowed down, but it must first be detected and treated.
Living Donors for Kidney Transplants
My kids are both Type One Diabetics so they are at greater risk of kidney disease among many, many other complications and diseases. We get their blood drawn annually to check for things like kidney disease. It is the best way to prevent and treat it before it becomes to the point that a transplant is necessary.
Watch this video about a diabetic that needed a kidney transplant and pancreas transplant – it changed her life!
Speaking of changing lives….There is an extremely high need for organ donors right now. There are 100,000 people waiting in line for a kidney transplant. 🙁 There are 120,000 people waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant in the U.S.) The good news is that you can make a difference. You can be a LIVING donor which means that you can change someone’s life in a powerful way by donating a kidney. Check out this story of how a wife gave her kidney to another woman in order to save her husband!
You can get more facts about kidney disease and becoming a living donor on the FixingPaco.org website, a non-profit organization by the Mendez National Institute of Transplantation Foundation (MNITF).
Please help me spread the word by sharing this blog post to your friends and family on social media. Who knows how many lives we can impact together!
