The 2015 Campaign Image contains the main message of this year campaign: Kidney Health for All.
Zachary Shaw
Copy Editor
One in three American adults are currently at risk for kidney disease, according to kidney.org. Thursday, Mar. 12 will be recognized as World Kidney Day.
The kidneys belong to the urinary and endocrine systems and thus serve for many jobs. With their many duties the kidneys have two major functions for the body:
“They [kidneys] filter the blood to eliminate harmful waste products made naturally from metabolism or that sneak into our body from the environment (like pesticides on food). Kidneys also re-absorb essential nutrients to prevent them from being eliminated in urine,” said Dennis Delfert, Lewis and Clark Community College Biology Professor.
Kidney health, while important, often goes unnoticed due to lack of early symptoms. However, mayoclinic’s website states that some of the onset symptoms of kidney disease include: nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, chest pain and high blood pressure.
The goal of World Kidney Day is clear, “raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide,” according to worldkidneyday.org. With that call to action, kidney health can be easily monitored by taking a urine or blood test at a hospital or doctors office.
“The easiest way to check your kidney health is a urinalysis. Which can be performed in our [L&C] family health clinic on campus,” Nursing majors, Taylor Rusten and Kadi Lorton said.
Within the U.S. over 100,000 people are currently awaiting a kidney transplant with a mere 17,000 receiving one from a matched donor annually. But a with healthy lifestyle these issues can be avoided.
The World Kidney Day organization outlines the “8 Golden Rules” to properly take care of the kidney organs. These eight recommendations are as followed:
- exercise regularly,
- maintain blood sugar levels,
- monitor blood pressure,
- stick to a healthy diet/balance body weight,
- have a steady water intake,
- do not smoke,
- avoid taking over the counter drugs regularly,
- and have routine check-ups for kidney function.
In this infographics about kidneys and kidney disease, you can find some facts and figures on Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and useful information on how kidneys work and how to keep them healthy.
Everyday 12 people die waiting for a kidney according to kidney.org, with few organ donors and underfunding for medical research regarding kidney wellness, help is needed.
To join the movement and get involved visit one of these sites to see how to make an impact:
Contact Zach at zshaw@lc.edu
