Chronic kidney disease, or CKD as it is commonly referred to, is a debilitating condition that can ultimately be fatal if not treated properly. The good news is that there are methods you can use at home, as well as those prescribed by a doctor, to lessen your symptoms, and make each day less of a hassle. Let’s take a look at five ways chronic kidney disease is treated.
Medication
As with most diseases, one of the obvious treatment options is medication. However, it should be mentioned that there is no medication that can treat CKD directly. Instead, medication is used to handle the various symptoms and aliments (such as high blood pressure, and high cholesterol) that are caused by the disease. This can be one of the most effective ways to get relief from the daily issues caused by chronic kidney disease.
Making Positive Lifestyle Changes
One of the most overlooked CKD treatments is altering your lifestyle choices. Believe it or not, making healthy choices such as eating a balanced diet, or giving up smoking, can have a noticeable effect on symptoms associated with CKD, and on the health of your kidneys themselves. While this won’t reverse chronic kidney disease, it can help to prevent it in many cases. Other things you can do to help fight CKD include:
- Lower alcohol consumption
- Lose weight
- Exercise regularly
Dialysis
Unfortunately, if CKD progresses far enough, it can impair the function of the kidneys enough that they are unable to perform their primary function; cleaning your blood. At this point, dialysis is one of the most common treatments for chronic kidney disease. There are two types of dialysis, hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Hemodialysis uses a machine to clean the blood and is what you’re probably most familiar with. Peritoneal dialysis on the other hand, works to filter your blood through the lining of your abdomen to clean it.
Diabetes Treatment
It may be surprising but keeping your diabetes under control if you have it is an effective CKD Treatment. This includes keeping your blood pressure and blood sugar within acceptable levels for people who suffer from diabetes. Lapsing on your diabetes treatment, or ignoring all together, can have a disastrous effect on your kidneys if you also suffer from CKD.
Magnetic Bio-therapies
Though somewhat controversial a trend in recent years is the use of magnetic bio-therapy to help treat chronic kidney disease. Basically, this entails you wearing a belt with a special magnet on it positioned near your lower back where your kidneys are located. Obviously, treatment methods such as these should not be relied upon to treat CKD by themselves but may bring your added comfort in conjunction with doctor prescribed treatments.
CKD is Incurable, But There is Hope
While chronic kidney disease is incurable, it can be prevented in many cases. Eating a healthy diet, and living an active, healthy lifestyle go a long way in keeping your kidneys functioning as they should. In the event that you do develop CKD, these same lifestyle choices can help prevent the damage from becoming worse and ease the symptoms of your CKD on a daily basis. In extreme cases, getting a kidney transplant is also an option
