![]()
A new study about kidney disease, released amid the flurry of controversy over toxicity of Celebrex late last week, caught my attention this morning for a very important reason: The over-dependence on pharmaceuticals that, for the most part, do far more harm to your overall health than good.
Anywhere from 10 to 20 million Americans have kidney disease but don't know they have it. In fact, the number of people with kidney failure doubled and the number starting dialysis or having their first kidney transplant increased by 50 percent over the past decade alone. More than 400,000 Americans are now being treated for kidney failure at a cost of $25 BILLION annually.
Kidney disease by the numbers:
- More than 7 million people have less than half the kidney function of a healthy young adult.
- Some 11 million have at least half of what's considered normal functioning, but they also have persistent protein in their urine, a sign of kidney disease.
- Less than 10 percent of adults with moderately decreased kidney function (25-50 percent of the filtering capacity of a young healthy adult) had been told they had weakened or failing kidneys.
This research mirrors the results of a similar study I posted two years ago from the National Kidney Foundation. A quick search of articles about kidney damage pulled up some likely culprits:
EurekAlert December 17, 2004