Lifestyle Changes Can Reduce Risk of Chronic Kidney Disease

Lifestyle Changes – About 37 million people in the U.S. live with chronic kidney disease, and about 40% of those in the early stages of the disease do not know they have it. Fortunately, there are ways to help keep your kidneys healthy and watch for warning signs.

Lynne Wright deeply appreciates the role that healthy kidneys play in people’s lives because diseased kidneys have played a huge role in hers.

Kidney disease nearly claimed the life of her husband, Scott. A 25-year-old woman donated the kidney that saved him. That kind of act inspired Lynne, in 2020, to become a kidney donor.

Helping people with kidney disease is now a full-time job for Wright. She directs the Patient and Family Partner Program at the Kidney Foundation of Central Pennsylvania. That program trains volunteers, most of whom have been affected by kidney disease, to counsel clients facing the disease (and the fear and uncertainty that comes with it) for the first time.Lifestyle Changes

Partnered with Strive Health to help coordinate better care, at no additional cost, for members with moderate (stage 3) chronic kidney disease (CKD) or worse. That’s when noticeable CKD symptoms often begin for many people, such as weakness and fatigue or swelling in the hands or feet, according to experts at the National Kidney Foundation and the Mayo and Cleveland Clinics, among others.

The program’s nurse practitioners, dieticians, social workers, and care managers understand the science of CKD and can help members coordinate care with doctors, adhere to treatment, and even help members shop for kidney-friendly foods.Lifestyle Changes

Lifestyle Changes

“Chronic kidney disease is life-altering and, too often, life-ending,” said Dr. Jeremy Wigginton, chief medical officer at Capital Blue Cross. “This program, focused on education and with the support of your medical professionals, can improve members’ quality of life and help prevent CKD from progressing to a point where more expensive care is required.Lifestyle Changes

About the size of a computer mouse, healthy kidneys filter waste, toxins and excess fluid from the blood every 30 minutes. They are essential for the health of bones, blood, blood pressure and more.Lifestyle Changes

Diabetes and high blood pressure are the main causes of kidney failure. People over 60 are at higher risk, and heart disease, obesity, family history and tobacco use amplify those risks. About 40% of those in the early stages of the disease do not know they have it and are therefore less aware of the need to slow its progression, according to the CDC.Lifestyle Changes

Lifestyle Changes

About 37 million people in the U.S. have some level of CKD, ranging from stage 1, where the kidneys have mild damage but still function well, to stage 5, where the kidneys barely function or have failed. completely, according to the American Kidney Fund.

In 2019, treating Medicare beneficiaries with CKD cost $87.2 billion, and treating people with end-stage renal disease cost an additional $37.3 billion, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nationally, about 60% of CKD-related medical costs come from hospitalizations, some of which are avoidable.