Another Study On Obesity And Kidney Disease

It should come as no surprise that obesity contributes to chronic kidney disease as explained in this paper.  Abstract:

Obesity has become a worldwide epidemic, and its prevalence has been projected to grow by 40% in the next decade. This increasing prevalence has implications for the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and also for Chronic Kidney Disease. A high body mass index is one of the strongest risk factors for new-onset Chronic Kidney Disease. In individuals affected by obesity, a compensatory hyperfiltration occurs to meet the heightened metabolic demands of the increased body weight. The increase in intraglomerular pressure can damage the kidneys and raise the risk of developing Chronic Kidney Disease in the long-term. The incidence of obesity-related glomerulopathy has increased ten-fold in recent years. Obesity has also been shown to be a risk factor for nephrolithiasis, and for a number of malignancies including kidney cancer. This year the World Kidney Day promotes education on the harmful consequences of obesity and its association with kidney disease, advocating healthy lifestyle and health policy measures that makes preventive behaviors an affordable option.

Nephrolithiasis is the formation of kidney stones, which are quite painful (I have had them). Chronic kidney disease and kidney cancer are obviously key effectors of morbidity and mortality and anything we can do – including maintaining a healthy body weight – to avoid such outcomes would be well worth it.

Exercise Isn't Helping

By Tibor Végh (Tenerife 2010 124.JPG) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Americans are more obese than ever and exercise does not really help that much.

Some take medications. Or, you can just eat less.

Don’t Blame Your Genes

It’s not your genes, it’s your appetite and eating habits.

But weight loss averaged about 13 pounds over a year, regardless of genes, insulin levels or diet type. Also, some people lost as much as 60 pounds and others gained 15 pounds — more evidence that genetic characteristics and diet type appeared to make no difference.

What seemed to make a difference was healthful eating. Participants on both diets who consumed the fewest processed foods, sugary drinks, unhealthy fats and ate the most vegetables lost the most weight.

The results suggest that "precision medicine is not as important as eating mindfully, getting rid of packaged, processed food" and avoiding unhealthy habits like eating while watching television, said lead author Christopher Gardner.

So, excuses about “it’s my genes” do not justify BMI realities, and fad diets are a waste of time, if key essentials are met: “Participants on both diets who consumed the fewest processed foods, sugary drinks, unhealthy fats and ate the most vegetables lost the most weight."

I for one cut out sugary drinks – including orange juice and other fruit juices – cut back on saturated fats, cut back on foods with lots of added sugar, eat a bit less “packaged food,” while increasing fruits, vegetables, and whole grain as opposed to white.

The Real Headless Horseman: Obesity

By John Quidor - aQHCpcwsbaMXQA at Google Cultural Institute maximum zoom level, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22126482

For Halloween, we need to remember that much of the “treats” that children are getting are extremely unhealthy. Most treats are sugar/fat/high fructose corn syrup laden candy.  As a once-a-year event, this might be fine (in moderation), but with childhood obesity and metabolic syndrome on the rise, and colon cancer diagnosed at ever-younger ages (possibly due to weight problems), consuming such junk food should not be a habit.  It’s not “The Headless Horseman” stalking the land, but the obesity epidemic, and fewer and fewer of us are as slim as Ichabod Crane.

Who will take care of obesity?

Today I was listening to a podcast during which it was established that in general, people are uncomfortable talking about money, sex, and health. I agreed with the "money and sex" part, but considering health as a difficult topic was puzzling. Why not? Why cannot we discuss our health? Is it because (a) it would be equivalent to revealing our vulnerabilities, (b) it would be an admission of a failure of character/will, or (c) we simply do not want to complain?
 
Probably we should have organizations “Obese Anonymous”, “Food Addict Anonymous”, or “Couch Potato Anonymous”. If sugar can be as addictive as smoking, why cannot we have “Sugar Addict Anonymous”? Are alcohol abuse or smoking more frequent causes of death than unhealthy diet and physical inactivity? Even in the developing world, smoking seems to be taking the back seat as a killer when compared to obesity and physical inactivity.  

Why do we feel comfortable when our kids have school lectures on the dangers of alcohol, drugs, and smoking, but not on obesity and inactivity? 

Do our teachers lead by example? Do our medical doctors lead by example? In reality, our docs cannot advise on diet or physical activity, as this is not the knowledge introduced to them in medical school. May be this is why at least 44 percent of the American doctors are overweight or obese.

Also, consider the following fact: after 1953, when it was already published that smoking causes lung cancer, and the causation is beyond any doubt, large numbers of doctors were still unconvinced. 

”In 1960, in a poll organised by the American Cancer Society, only a third of all US doctors agreed that cigarette smoking should be considered ‘a major cause of lung cancer’. This same poll revealed that 43% of all American doctors were still smoking cigarettes on a regular basis, with occasional users accounting for another 5%. With half of all doctors smoking, it should come as no surprise that most Americans remained unconvinced of life-threatening harms from the habit.” (The history of the discovery of the cigarette-lung cancer link: evidentiary traditions, corporate denial, global toll. Proctor RN. Tob Control. 2012, 21:87-91).

By the way, an effective and cheap way of quitting smoking has existed for the past 50 years, but it has not been popularized in the U.S., probably because it is too cheap and too effective?

The point of this story is that the medical doctors have rarely been at the forefront of prevention. But could we blame the doctors for not confronting the obesity and promoting healthy dietary habits today? 

Habits are established in childhood. The childhood years should be the focus of any prevention campaign if we want to achieve a major impact.  

Who can accomplish this? The schools? The parents? Special government-led programs for the entire families? 

Do you have any suggestions?