Anxious Is As Anxious Does

While we have friends of all ages, I’ve noticed that our older friends seem to become more anxious the older they become. I don’t know if that’s a function of age or personality or something else. What I do want to know is what is that anxiety doing to our kidneys. Maybe this was a fool’s errand, but I still wanted to know.

The National Institutes of Health contains a study about this. Yay! So maybe this wasn’t such a foolish quest after all. What I especially liked about this study was that the publication was recent, last year in fact. Here are the parts of the study that are relevant: 

“…. Anxiety has been associated with disease progression in non-diabetes patients…. Recently, several clinical research [sic] have shown a negative effect of anxiety on kidney function among patients with kidney transplantation or chronic kidney disease …. Presence of anxiety has been associated with proteinuria in non-diabetes patients ….  independent of traditional related factors for DKD, including age, sex, smoking, duration of diabetes, blood pressure status, glycemic control, hypertension, dyslipidemia, RAS blockers [Gail here – Wikipedia: ‘The renin-angiotensin system (RAS), or renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS), is a hormone system that regulates blood pressure, fluid, and electrolyte balance, and systemic vascular resistance’]. and statins use, as well as depression, diagnosed anxiety disorders at baseline were found to increase the risk of progression of DKD. The observation is in line with a recent study, which has shown that anxiety/depression is related to an increased risk of incidence of chronic kidney disease among people with diabetes …. Similarly, Castellano-Guerrero et al. found that anxious symptomatology independently correlates with microvascular and macrovascular complications in individuals with diabetes ….”  

Okay, so it seems I’m on the right track. Let me see what else I can find. Aha! Nature, a leading scientific journal, presented the following:

“…. a positive relationship was found between serum Hb level [Gail here – I certainly am interrupting a lot today: This is hemoglobin.] and both physical and psychological domains, which coincides with other studies…. In a Study [sic] conducted in the US, serum Hemoglobin level had an impact on the QoL [Me again: quality of life] in which higher levels result in a better quality of life….  This can be attributed to limited oxygen supply associated with low Hemoglobin levels which affect the physical performance….

Our study has also shown a relationship between the psychological domain and both serum albumin and phosphorous levels. An increase in serum Albumin [sic] results in higher psychological domain scores…. Contrarily, Serum phosphorous levels was negatively correlated with the domain…. GFR has been found to have a positive correlation with the psychological domain….”

But wait! There’s more, as they used to say on late night television ads:

“Anxiety and depression showed significant negative effects on the psychosocial self-management ability and endogenous [Me yet again – means from within. In this case, something that originates in the body.]creatinine clearance rate of renal transplant recipients and thus should be given more attention.”

Thanks to the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, especially the Psychosomatic Medicine section, for the above information.

Wait a minute. Why don’t we explore what anxiety is before we go any further. Luckily for us, The American Kidney Fund has an easily understood explanation:

“Anxiety is a reaction your body may have to stress. It can be helpful in some situations by warning and preparing you for danger. But if you feel intense fear or are extremely anxious on a regular basis or these feelings get in the way of your normal activities, it is important to let your doctor and social worker know so you can get treatment to help you feel better.

There are different types of anxiety. Some of them include:

• Generalized anxiety: intense fear and worry for little to no reason
• Panic disorder: occurs when you experience repeated panic attacks. Panic attacks are sudden and intense fear with physical symptoms such as heart racing, difficulty breathing, sweating and feelings of terror.
• Agoraphobia: fear and avoidance of places and situations that might cause feelings of panic, feeling trapped, feeling helpless or embarrassed. This condition can make it difficult for you to leave your home.
• Social anxiety: intense worry about daily social interactions
• Phobias: intense fear of a specific situation or object

If you are feeling any of these symptoms of anxiety, talk to your doctor or social worker.”

Conversely, your CKD itself or having a transplant may be causing the anxiety. It’s still anxiety and it’s still affecting your kidneys. You still need to ameliorate the anxiety. The Dialysis Patients Citizens Education Center elucidates the following:

“The stress associated with having a chronic illness and ESRD, specifically, may influence feelings of insecurity and vulnerability. As people learn more about kidney disease, its treatment, and how to manage and live with it, the stress often decreases. Knowledge and feeling more empowered may help to address the stress level. In addition, relaxation techniques, meditation and mindfulness may also decrease stress and provide benefits for physical and mental health and well-being.”

Satellite Health succinctly explicates what anxiety does to your kidneys:

“While having small amounts of stress in your life is perfectly normal, long exposure to your body’s stress response can make your body work harder to keep you healthy. When your body is experiencing high levels of stress, it has the following effects:

• Increased blood pressure
• Higher heart rate
• Higher amount of fat in your blood
• Increased blood sugar

These things make it harder for your kidneys to do their job to keep you healthy. “

Hmmm, it seems I’m getting anxious writing about anxiety and the kidneys. I think I’ll ‘reach out’ as included in WebMD’s list of methods to deal with anxiety:

“… here are some expert tips on what may help you feel less stressed: 

• Make sleep a priority.
• Get enough exercise and the right nutrition. 
• Try deep breathing. 
• Practice mindfulness meditation.
• Reach out to friends, family, or your spiritual community.“

Until next week.

Keep living your life!

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