The kidney disease epidemic  

LIKE the proverbial ‘trouble’ referenced by the late Chinua Achebe which comes to a household with its own stool and so defeats any attempt to deny it a seat, kidney disease is currently ravaging the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Afflicting the powerful and the downtrodden alike, it has effectively reduced the lives of many Nigerians to undiluted and uninterrupted misery. The auguries are indeed portentous: more than 20 million Nigerians are living with kidney problems. And, what is more, some 20,000 Nigerians develop end-stage kidney disease every year, requiring dialysis and transplants to stay alive. There is no subsidy in place for treatment and the predisposing factors—diabetes, hepatitis, hypertension, diabetes, HIV, sickle cell anaemia, painkillers, and bleaching creams, etc—are all thriving among a population reputed to be worst afflicted by poverty globally. Which is why, on the occasion of the World Kidney Day (WKD) on March 10, a day dedicated to raising awareness on the disease and outlining strategies for prevention and treatment, medical experts decried the current state of affairs, calling on the government to act fast.

According to media reports, there has been a spike in cases of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in parts of northern Nigeria, especially in Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDP) camps where access to healthcare is increasingly scant following the widespread insecurity in the zone. In that environment, and we dare say in other parts of the country, most of the people living with hypertension, diabetes and chronic infections are blissfully unaware of their condition; and even if they did, could hardly access quality treatment. Worse still, the cost of treatment across the country is patently prohibitive. According to reports, it costs about N600,000 a month to put a patient on dialysis and N10 million to perform kidney transplant in the country. Because of this prohibitive cost of treatment, pictures (and sometimes videos) of Nigerians soliciting donations for the treatment of their kidney conditions have become rather routine on both the traditional media and the social media space, especially when the victim is a former celebrity hard done by the vagaries of life.

In this connection, it is apposite to call on governments at federal, state and local levels to put in place subsidies for the treatment of kidney disease. That way, those living with the disease can get treatment much more easily and go on to live longer and in better health. It is unconscionable to leave patients in the lurch as it were. Governments must, in addition, also create awareness on kidney disease on a regular basis so that Nigerians can be better informed and motivated to fight the disease. They should screen the populace for the risk factors and control those factors. More importantly, they should expend energy on addressing socio-economic problems and stamp out kidney disease. With bad governance, for instance, it is certain that the populace will suffer from hypertension, a core predisposing factor for kidney disease. Addressing socio-economic issues is a sure way of achieving the theme of this year’s World Kidney Day: Kidney Health for All.

Beyond that, however, is the question of healthy lifestyle choices. As studies have shown over the years, poor eating habits, smoking and obesity are associated with increased risk for kidney disease. Healthy diets are expected to be high in fruit, legumes, nuts, whole grains and low-fat dairy. Consuming high quantities of red and processed meats and sugar-sweetened beverages is an open invitation to kidney disease. It is a no-brainer that individuals with a body mass index (BMI) above 30 would be twice as likely to develop kidney disease, and that smokers would be about 60 percent more likely to develop kidney disease. That being the case, it is imperative that Nigerians embrace healthy lifestyles. If it takes maintaining normal blood pressure, losing excess weight, controlling blood glucose levels, quitting smoking and exercising regularly to keep kidney disease at bay, why not? And what evil would eating right do? None at all. If you want to stay alive and ward off kidney-related problems, you might want to get on a bicycle instead of spending hours on video games and mobile phone applications. It’s just commonsense.