Why Kidney Health Matters Now

Your kidneys do more than remove waste. They also help keep minerals balanced in your blood.

Minerals are things your body needs to work well. Sodium and potassium are two of them. Balanced means the amounts stay in a healthy range.

Think of your kidneys as a scale. They add or remove sodium and potassium to keep the amounts even. You rarely notice this work.

Your kidneys also make a hormone called erythropoietin. A hormone is a messenger your body makes. It carries instructions from one place to another.

This messenger tells your body to make red blood cells. Red blood cells carry oxygen around the body.

In diabetes, your kidneys, heart and eyes are closely linked. Think of them like three rooms sharing one set of pipes. A problem in one can reach the others.

High blood pressure puts strain on all three. Strain means extra pressure on a part of the body.

Caring for your kidneys may also support your heart and eyes. So protecting them can help your health as a whole.

Key takeaways

• Kidneys balance sodium and potassium in your blood.
• They make a hormone that tells your body to make red blood cells.
• Kidney, heart and eye health are closely linked in diabetes.

Try it

Write down the dates of your last kidney, eye and heart checks. Then ask your care team which one is due next.