The National Kidney Foundation of Michigan is calling on all Michiganders to learn more about kidney disease and know whether you’re at risk. More than a million Michigan adults have chronic kidney disease and most don’t know it. In most cases, chronic kidney disease can be managed or prevented to delay the onset of other health complications.
The kidneys are the body’s chemical factories, filtering waste and performing vital functions that control things like red blood cell production and blood pressure. But over time, the kidneys can become damaged with little or no physical symptoms to warn you that your kidneys are in trouble.
In observance of National Kidney Month, the National Kidney Foundation of Michigan is urging everyone to learn their risk factors for kidney disease. Visit our Kidney Disease page to learn more.
Quick Links
Click LEARN MORE in the boxes below for more information on Kidney Month!
Events and Happenings!
The Big Ask, The Big Give Workshop
Where: Zoom
When: March 8, 2023 from 4pm-8pm
Kidney Screening -World Kidney Day
Where: Mexican Consulate
When: March 9, 2023 from 9am-2pm
MOTTEP Transplant Symposium
Where: Zoom
When: March 16, 2023 from 8am – 4:30pm & March 17, 2023, from 11:30am – 2pm
Kidney Screening
Where: Kadesh Baptist Church
When: March 19, 2023 from 11am-2pm
Kidney Screening
Where: Fellowship Chapel
When: March 26, 2023 from 12pm-2:30pm
Programs
Diabetes Prevention Program
If you’re at risk of type 2 diabetes, the DPP's small group setting, along with a trained and passionate coach, helps you make sustained, healthy lifestyle changes.
Kidney PATH
Kidney Personal Action Toward Health (Kidney-PATH) is an 8-week workshop for participants who are in various stages of Chronic Kidney Disease.
Kidney Disease Support Group
Join us to share and discuss the issues, challenges, and triumphs faced by others like you.
Resources
The NKFM would love you to share the celebration of World Kidney Day and National Kidney Month with your friends and family. Please feel free to use any of the infographics or messages on your social media channels and don’t forget to tag @KidneyMI or use the hashtags: #KidneyMonth, #WKD, or #WorldKidneyDay.
NKFM Fact Sheets
6 Ways Kidneys Can Keep You Healthy
Chronic Kidney Disease Fact Sheet
NKFM Social Media Accounts:
Facebook: facebook.com/KidneyMI
YouTube: youtube.com/KidneyMI
Instagram: instagram.com/KidneyMI
Twitter: twitter.com/KidneyMI
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/kidneymi
External Resources
Facts
10 Things Your Kidneys Do:
- Filter 200 liters of blood a day, removing two liters of toxins, wastes and water
- Regulate the body’s hydration and water balance
- Regulate blood pressure by controlling fluid levels and making the hormone that causes blood vessels to constrict
- Support healthy bones and tissues by producing the active form of Vitamin D
- Produce the hormone that stimulates bone marrow to manufacture red blood cells
- Keep blood minerals in balance
- Keep electrolytes in balance
- Regulate blood acid levels
- Remove certain drugs from the blood
- Eliminate excess water-soluble vitamins
Statistics:
- 26 million American adults (age 20+) have chronic kidney disease.
- More than a million Michigan adults (age 20+) have chronic kidney disease.
- 1 in 3 American adults is at risk for kidney disease.
- In Michigan, African Americans make up only 14 percent of the general population, yet make up 45 percent of the dialysis population, and 46 percent of the kidney transplant waiting list.
- As the incidence of obesity in children increases, so does the rate of type 2 diabetes, which is a leading cause of kidney failure. One in three kids born in 2000 will develop diabetes.
- More than 1,950 people were waiting for a lifesaving kidney transplant in Michigan on February 1, 2023.
Detection and Prevention:
- Many adults with chronic kidney disease do not even know it – there are little or no symptoms in the early stages, people are not visiting their physicians regarding the illness, and many are not educated on the risk factors or the detection steps they should take.
- Diabetes and high blood pressure cause 64% of all kidney failure cases in the US.
- Ask your doctor to calculate your glomerular filtration rate (GFR) from the results of a simple blood test. GFR can tell your doctor what your level of kidney function is.
Risk Factors:
- Individuals with diabetes and high blood pressure are at higher risk.
- Older individuals, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans and Arab Americans are at increased risk for developing chronic kidney disease.
- African Americans are four times more likely to develop kidney failure from diabetes than Caucasians.
- African Americans are 6.5 times more likely to develop kidney failure from high blood pressure than Caucasians.
