When it comes to vital organs, hearts get all the love, and kidneys get the short end of the stick. So, this March 14th, on World Kidney Day, we’re asking people to #HeartYourKidneys for a change! Make kidney health part of everyday conversations with the same urgency as heart disease, cancer or diabetes. Because if your kidneys stop working, so do you.
This year, the National Kidney Foundation has partnered with NFL Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice to promote kidney health in a 30- and 60-second PSA. He invites people to know as much about their kidney stats as they know about football stats and talk to their doctor about kidney health. Kidneys keep you alive and kicking. They tackle blood pressure and keep it down. They play defense against kidney stones and keep your body on top of its game 24/7. Yet, when it comes to vital organs, the other frontline players, like the heart, get all the attention. For Pro-football Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice, kidney health is a personal cause: his brother Tom has chronic kidney disease. He now joins the National Kidney Foundation in a public awareness campaign to make kidney health part of everyday conversation and give kidneys the attention they deserve.
Join the movement at #HeartYourKidneys.
I’m particularly interested in working with The National Kidney Foundation as it has come to my attention that as African Americans we have an increased risk for kidney disease. African Americans constitute more than 35% of all patients in the U.S. receiving dialysis for kidney failure, but only represent 13.2% of the overall U.S. population. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure in African Americans. African Americans are twice as likely to be diagnosed with diabetes as Caucasians.
When it comes to vital organs, hearts get all the love. Kidneys don’t get nearly the same love as the heart, the bladder, the colon—those heavy hitters get all the attention. Most Americans know stats about their favorite football players but nothing about their kidney stats.
But kidneys score touchdowns for our bodies all day. They are essential to keeping us alive and healthy, and they work 24/7 to remove waste and keep our blood pressure in check. When kidneys stop working, dialysis or transplants are needed just to survive. Kidneys are just as vital to sustaining life as the heart. Let’s give kidneys some love. Heart your kidneys for a change.
It only takes two simple tests, a urine and a blood test, at your primary care doctor’s office to check for any red flags. Ask your doctor a simple question, especially if you have high blood pressure or diabetes: How are my kidneys, doc? Kidney disease can affect anyone. But the risk for kidney disease can be reduced with regular checkups, a healthy diet, and exercise. Because even if you inherit kidney disease, you can still slow it down with lifestyle changes.
Let us know our kidney stats like we know our football player stats. Refuse to accept that kidney health is somehow less important than other pressing health issues. You have to reject the notion that this disease only affects older people and be a voice that doesn’t back down, that won’t accept excuses, and that leads and ignites change. Make kidney health part of everyday conversations with the same urgency as heart disease, cancer, or diabetes.