Kidney Disease on the Rise

By Marilyn Zink

They are pink, shaped like a kidney bean and are the size of your clenched fist. They are your kidneys and they perform some very important functions in your body - functions that could cause you to die within days or weeks if your kidneys fail. Kidneys could be described as the master chemists of the body. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the kidneys are known as the Mother of All Organs.

Kidneys regulate water, remove wastes and balance your body's chemicals. They also help to regulate the level of minerals, such as calcium and phosphate, which are important for bone formation. The kidneys produce hormones, one which helps to regulate blood pressure and another which helps bone marrow to produce red blood cells. More than 2 million Canadians suffer from kidney failure or some form of kidney-related disease such as diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney stones or urinary tract infection. The Kidney Foundation of Canada reports that kidney disease is on the rise, with kidney failure increasing at a rate of 15% every year. Currently in B.C. there are 355 people awaiting kidney transplants. Diabetes and high blood pressure are the two leading causes of kidney failure.

Another cause of kidney disease and failure is Hemolytic Urenic Syndrome (HUS), also known as "Hamburger Disease." HUS is most often caused by the eating of undercooked hamburger meat or raw meat contaminated with a highly toxic type of E.coli bacteria. When the kidneys fail, toxic wastes and fluids accumulate in the body. Dialysis is required to artificially clean the blood, or a kidney transplant is required. Dialysis cleans the blood by passing it through an artificial kidney machine (hemodialysis) or by filtering it within the abdomen. Eighty-two per of the approximately 3000 Canadians on the transplant waiting list are waiting for kidney transplants. In B.C. an average of 500 people are waiting for kidney transplants.

Warning Signs for Kidney Disease

High Blood Pressure
Puffiness of the eyes, hands and feet
Passage of bloody, cloudy or tea-colored urine
Excessive foaming of the urine
Frequent passing of urine during the night
Passing less urine or difficulty passing urine
Fatigue

Preventing and Treating Kidney Disease
Preventing kidney disease means keeping blood pressure down by following a healthy lifestyle and diet.

Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are hard masses that can grow from crystals forming within the kidneys. The stones often cause severe pain, sometimes accompanied by gastrointestinal symptoms, chills, fever and blood in the urine. Most stones are made of calcium oxalate. People are greatest risk for stone formation are those with overactive paraythyroid glands or chronic kidney infections. Kidney stone formation is increasing with men over 30 affected more than women. Vegetarians have a decreased risk of developing stones. Consuming salt, sugar, animal protein and oxalate rich foods such as spinach, chocolate and nuts is linked to kidney stone formation. Cutting down on these substances and increasing potassium rich foods through fruits and vegetables can help avoid stone formation. Magnesium and vitamin B6 is used by the body to convert oxalate into other substances, so these supplements reduce the risk of kidney stones. Cranberry juice has been shown to reduce the amount of ionized calcium in the urine by over 50% per cent in patients with recurrent kidney stones. Glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate may also play a role in reducing the risk the kidney stone formation.

Herbs
Some herbs that act as diurectics increse urine volume which helps prevent kidney stones. These herbs include asparagus root, birch leaf, couch grass, goldenrod, horsetail, lovage, parsley, and stinging nettle.