The Centers for Disease Control Prevention (CDC) reported 10% of adults in the United States have chronic kidney disease (CKD).
Additionally, the study also links good heart health and protecting your kidneys.
Chances of getting CKD increase at age 50 with CKD most common in adults older than 70.
Heart Health and Protecting Your Kidneys
Over the last 22 years, the American Heart Association (AHA) followed 14,832 adults aged 45-64 to study the onset and development of CKD.
Researchers performed the study based on people’s “ranking” of living Life’s Simple 7 which are the ideal heart health factors. They include:
- Healthy Blood Pressure
- Cholesterol
- Blood Sugar
- Diet
- Body Weight
- Sufficient Physical Activity
- Not Smoking
Study participants were labeled for living Life’s Simple 7 as poor, intermediate, or ideal and were followed for 22 years to track and study the development of CKD, which is the condition of the kidneys being unable to filter and remove waste and toxins from the body.
The Results: Good Heart Health May Also Protect Your Kidneys
After 22 years, researchers found 2,743 of the participants developed chronic kidney disease.
Furthermore, the study found that a third of those who lived Life’s Simple 7 poorly, or the lowest level ranking, developed chronic kidney disease by the final follow-up appointment.
Participants who followed Life’s Simple 7 ideally had the lowest probability of developing CKD.
A small percentage of 6.5% of those who followed at least 6 ideal health factors developed CKD.
Their good heart health attributed to their overall health as well as decreased risk of CKD.
Some considerations of the ideal ways of living Life’s Simple 7 include being a non-smoker or having quit more than a year previous, having a BMI below 25, and have a balanced, healthy diet of vegetables, fruits, protein, and low sodium foods.
Additionally, blood pressure was less than 120/80, which is considered normal levels.
The Takeaway from the Study
Casey Rebholz, the study author and assistant professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health stated:
“This study was the first to show that for people who are generally healthy, a higher number of ideal Life’s Simple 7 health factors is associated with a reduced risk of new-onset kidney disease.”
What these researchers found after an extensive study on nearly 15,000 participants proved that having good heart health may also protect your kidneys.
Living Life’s Simple 7 as ideally as possible will help your heart and your kidneys function better.
Rebholz followed her first statement by adding:
“Attaining ideal cardiovascular health as defined by the AHA Life’s Simple 7 metric may have substantial benefit for preventing the development of kidney disease. Recommending these ideal health factors may be effective as a population-wide strategy for kidney disease prevention.”
Not only will maintaining a healthy lifestyle, as defined by AHA, keep your body in great condition, it can prevent diseases like chronic kidney disease.
Resources
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160406165246.htm