Chronic Kidney Disease

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Chronic kidney disease (CKD), which involves progressive, irreversible loss of kidney function, is present in 26 million Americans (Lewis, 2011, pp 1170-1181). There are many causative factors of CKD. Some of these causes are environmental; that is, the prevalence of CKD is influenced by how we live as individuals. Lack of exercise and poor diet can lead to hypertension, which can lead to CKD. Although other factors are involved, lack of exercise and poor diet also increases a person’s risk for developing diabetes, which is one of the second leading causes of CKD. This paper examines a few of those causes more closely and aims to educate clinicians, and their patients, on health promotion activities that they can implement to reduce the risk of getting CKD.
The kidneys, a major organ, are responsible for the control of blood pressure. When the pressure of blood flow is continually high, blood vessels can stretch, scar, weaken, or even harden (citation?). Whether blood pressure hardens or weakens the arteries and vessels is irrelevant because the end result is the same; the kidneys’ ability to filter the blood is tainted and they may stop removing sodium, wastes, and fluid from the body. The toxic substances and the fluid that is retained in the bloodstream may damage the vessels even more, leading to a dangerous downward spiral. In fact, high blood pressure is the second leading cause of kidney failure in the United States after diabetes (citation? NKUDIC). Preventing hypertension, and if present controlling it, is paramount to maintaining the health of our kidneys.
Diet is one aspect of our life we have the ability to control. A poor diet will eventually affect our blood pressure and can also play a major role in our risk of d...

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...ources a community lacks in terms of nutrition. Are there too many junk-food vending machines in schools and not enough options for healthy food? By providing the community with options to make better food choices, the nurse can lower a person’s risk for developing hypertension and diabetes. One example of this type of intervention is encouraging and working with the leaders of the community’s school district to replace the vending machines with milk or water instead of carbonated beverages. The nurse could also help schools or community recreation centers provide snacks or meals that are high in fiber, rather than offering non-nutritional junk food, such as replacing potato chips with nuts or popcorn to children and adults alike. By providing a community with a means to exercise and eat properly, the nurse can play a significant and direct role in preventing CKD.

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