Diabetes Mellitus & Kidney Damage
Uncontrolled diabetes is the #1 cause of kidney failure in the United States, responsible for over 30% of the patients with the disease. The majority of kidney transplant recipient have either type 1 or type 2 diabetes.Over time, high levels of glucose in the blood destroys the kidney’s ability to filter toxins and waste from the blood. The glucose molecule is larger than the molecules that the kidney is supposed to filter. The filtering mechanism is damaged as glucose is forced into the urine and the kidney loses the ability to filter small molecules. The damage continues until it is so severe that waste begins to build up in the bloodstream.
