The Effects of Diabetes on the Kidneys: What You Need to Know

The effects of diabetes on the kidneys: in this article that we have prepared, you will find everything you need to know.

When analyzing data, we see that the number of people in the world who suffer from Diabetes Mellitus is increasing significantly. It is estimated that more than 460 million people in the world suffer from this pathology.

Studies indicate that this may be directly related to the rhythm of life that people have, which ends up generating bad eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. And one of the main causes of diabetes is not having a balanced diet.

What many people are unaware of is that the lack of proper treatment of this disease can lead to complications in the body, such as cardiovascular disease, damage to the eyes, nerves and even the kidneys.

What is Diabetes Mellitus

The effects of diabetes on the kidneys

First of all, we must understand what this disease is about and what is its relationship with the kidneys.

Diabetes Mellitus is caused by high blood glucose levels. This occurs due to a lack of the hormone insulin or its inability to properly perform its function in the body. Insulin is responsible for promoting the entry of glucose into the body’s cells.

If this hormone fails or there is a defect in its activity, glucose levels tend to rise.

Risk factors

• Family history of Diabetes Mellitus;
• Age equal to or greater than 45 years;
• Sedentary lifestyle;
• Overweight;
• Low HDL-c (good cholesterol) rate;
• Elevated triglycerides;

Use of hyperglycemic drugs: thiazides, corticosteroids, beta-blockers.

How diabetes affects the kidneys

Due to the high levels of sugar, the effects of diabetes on the kidneys can be observed, which end up having to filter more blood than normal, overloading the organs and even losing protein in the urine. This causes diabetes to damage the kidneys, making it difficult for them to filter.

Over time, due to the damage caused, the kidneys begin to perform their function more forcefully and end up overloading themselves. With this, they can lose their filtering capacity, which can often culminate in chronic kidney failure.

It is important to emphasize that not all patients with diabetes can develop kidney disease. If glucose levels are controlled from the start, this risk can be reduced considerably.

Signs of kidney complications

The symptoms that may appear are sometimes easily confused with other illnesses. Among them are:

• Lack of appetite;
• Swelling;
• Weakness;
• Sickness;
• Sleep loss;
• Stomach pain;
• Chest pain or pressure;
• Decrease or increase in the volume of urine.

Because the initial symptoms are similar to those of other diseases, the identification of the disease often only occurs when it is already in an advanced stage. With this, the kidneys may already be in a critical phase of their functioning.Studies indicate that in Brazil 46% of diabetics are not aware that they have the disease, since it often does not manifest itself at first, remaining silent. And of course, at the same time they are unaware of the effects of diabetes on the kidneys.

All of this causes patients not to control their blood glucose as they should, which directly affects the kidneys and their capacity.

How the diagnosis is made

As soon as the patient attends the consultation and reports some of the symptoms mentioned above, the doctor immediately recommends carrying out some tests. They will confirm or rule out a kidney problem. These are:

• Blood Tests;
• Urine analysis tests;
• Measurement of urine output;
• Renal tissue biopsy;
• Ultrasound or CT scan.

Prevention

As explained above, sometimes diabetes can appear silently, which is why prevention is so important.

If the disease has already been diagnosed, maintaining adequate glucose control is essential. Thus avoiding possible complications that can generate other diseases, such as: cardiovascular diseases, chronic kidney disease and diabetic retinopathy.

Because of this, it is vitally important to take certain precautions, including:

• Controlling blood pressure;
• Make correct use of the medicines indicated by the specialists;
• Have a balanced diet, rich in vitamins, fiber and mineral salts. For example, greens, fruits and vegetables;
• Avoid consumption of processed foods, such as soft drinks, white flour and sweets;
• Chew your food well and eat slowly (it has been proven that eating quickly increases the risk of acquiring the disease);
• Do not go many hours without eating;
• Regularly practice physical activities;
• Body weight control;
• Do not consume alcoholic beverages;
• Eliminate the habit of smoking.

Conclusion

Education about diabetes and its complications is critical to preventing and managing kidney problems. As well as having an adequate treatment and following the care presented in today’s post can considerably minimize the effects of diabetes on the kidneys.

Advice: always carry out a complete check-up every year to assess how your health is. And among the exams performed, ask to include a creatine dosage measurement exam, which indicates if the kidneys are working properly.

See also our post: High pressure and diabetes: learn about the risks of this silent villain duo. It will certainly be very useful and help you to clear doubts about the subject. And it doesn’t stop there, we have many other relevant topics to share.