Changing the Odds: New Campaign Educates the Public About Kidney Disease Risk Factors

The first step to preventing kidney disease is understanding your risk, then getting tested.
Life-threatening kidney disease can strike anyone, young or old, and has many causes, but early intervention can make a difference. Lifestyle changes and a healthy diet can sometimes slow the progression of the disease when caught in the early stages, and even prolong kidney failure.
In the United States, 33 percent of adults are at risk for a life-threatening kidney disease. That’s a third of the people sitting beside you in a restaurant or coffee shop, a third of your colleagues – a third of the ones you love. Maybe even you.
 
NKF wants to change these odds. This Kidney Month NKF, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Society of Nephrology, initiated a large-scale Kidney Risk campaign, aimed at raising awareness for the importance of getting tested, while shining a light on five common risk factors: high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and a family history of kidney disease. Every adult in the United States needs to know if their at risk and can find out with the Kidney Risk Quiz.
 
This digital quiz will let responders know if they fall into the 33 percent while providing important next steps to care for their kidneys. “We have a public health crisis that needs to be addressed by all Americans,” said NKF CEO and kidney transplant recipient Kevin Longino. “We will never give up trying to find ways to reach people, slow or stop the progression of this disease and lessen the burden for patients.”

Share the Risk Quiz with your friends and family—it only takes a minute: MinuteForYourKidneys.org.