Metabolic Syndrome raises the risk of Kidney Disease

In a study yet to be published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN), researchers reveal that the risk of developing kidney disease is higher in people with metabolic syndrome.

A cluster of medical disorders that raises the risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and premature death is referred to as a metabolic disorder. A patient diagnosed with this health condition exhibits 3 or more of these characteristic symptioms, including increased blood pressure, surplus body fat around the waist/abdomen, increased blood sugar, low amounts of good cholesterol, and increased fatty acid levels.

The researchers reviewed medical literature and gathered information from 11 studies that assessed the association of metabolic syndrome with kidney disease. The study conducted by Sankar Navaneethan, MD (Cleveland Clinic) and his colleagues included 30,416 individuals from various ethnic groups. They found that:

• The risk of developing kidney disease, especially lower kidney disease, was 55% higher in people with metabolic syndrome.
• The development of kidney disease is associated with individual components of metabolic syndrome.
• A rise in the number of components of metabolic syndrome increased the risk of kidney disease.
Dr. Navaneethan said, “Primary care physicians may need to consider using metabolic syndrome as a marker to identify patients at higher risk of developing kidney disease.”

Kidney disease may be prevented by appropriate management and prevention of metabolic syndrome by methods such as losing excess body weight, eating a healthy diet, exercising, and decreasing blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar.

Although certain clinical studies conducted previously have already examined the effects of decreasing blood pressure and blood sugar on kidney function, the effects of exercise and weight loss on kidney function are yet to be evaluated.