Common disease diabetes and kidney failure – that is the connection
November 14th was World Diabetes Day. In 1991, when this day was celebrated for the first time, there were 3.7 million diabetics in Germany. Today there are already over 6 million. Diabetes is a common term as a widespread disease with epidemic proportions. What few people know, however, is that diabetes and kidney insufficiency are closely linked.
About 42% of people with type 2 diabetes who receive medical attention in Germany have impaired kidney function. In most cases, however, this has no serious consequences. However, 24% of all dialysis patients are diabetic. In these cases, the secondary disease with diabetes triggers has developed significantly negatively, making kidney replacement therapy necessary. The increased blood sugar level, in particular, poses great risks for the kidneys of a diabetic. One of the most common consequences is calcification of the kidney vessels. In addition, secondary diseases such as on the kidneys can be promoted in diabetics by an unhealthy lifestyle such as in smokers.
Proper nutrition is essential
It is well known that the subject of nutrition is also an important part of the daily routine of a diabetic. That is why the German Society for Nutrition has drawn up 10 rules for diabetics with normal kidney function for a healthy diet. In addition to the classics such as omitting high-fat or too sweet foods, the topic of fluid intake also plays an important role. The note “drink with reason” refers to both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. However, many patients have so far lacked a reliable way of measuring their fluid balance in a qualitatively clean and ad hoc manner.
And that’s exactly what we at BOCAhealthcare tackle. Our BOCAhealth system solution enables patients who regularly need to monitor their nutritional and hydration status to measure these values comfortably from home with just a few simple steps and to receive recommendations for action from the attending physician based on the data. If dialysis patients with diabetes have already suffered serious consequential damage to their kidneys, the necessity of a diet appropriate to the clinical picture and the meticulous monitoring of the body fluid balance is all the greater. The faster you can react to an unbalanced body fluid balance, the sooner unnecessary hospital stays can be avoided and the living standards of the affected patients can be increased.
The epidemic spread of diabetes – there are currently around 425 million cases worldwide – is simultaneously causing a dramatic increase in secondary diseases such as heart attack or kidney failure and thus an increasing need for a reliable solution for bioimpedance analysis such as BOCAhealth.
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