Abdominal obesity (or central obesity) – the layers of excess fat which hug the stomach has a considerable impact on health and none of it good. One consequence, especially for young people is the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) early in life and not many of them realise the implications.
The latest research from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) finds that 11 percent of the obese live with albuminuria which is when protein albumin in the urine is higher than it should be. It is a commonly used indicator which signals that the kidneys are not functioning normally and that people face an increased risk of developing CKD. It is a condition characterised by a gradual loss of kidney function over time and eventually either means kidney dialysis or a severe reduction in protein intake.
The study set out to evaluate whether obesity was associated with CKD even in an otherwise healthy young adult population and to identify risk factors that could promote this association. What was most prominent was that young adults (fewer than 5%) were unaware they could develop kidney disease with albuminuria. The study was published in the online journal PLOS ONE, where the team analysed health data on 6,918 non-pregnant adults ages 20 to 40.
The data was gathered between 1999 and 2010 by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and is a research study assessing the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the US.
“Even though chronic kidney disease typically manifests in older people, the disease can start much earlier but often is not recognised early on,” stated the lead researcher Michal L. Melamed, associate professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the US. “Because treatment options for CKD are limited, prevention is the best approach for those at risk. A healthier lifestyle in young adults will go a long way toward promoting kidney health later in life.”
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