Your kidneys work hard to filter out waste and excess fluid from your blood while also balancing your blood pressure and minerals. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) occurs when your kidneys don’t function as they should. You might not notice signs of CKD at first, but some people with CKD complain of foamy urine, fatigue, or weight loss. At more advanced stages, people with CKD could have problems concentrating, swelling in the extremities, or achy muscles.
Shahzia A. Lakhani, MSN, ACNP-BC, Senior Director of Clinical Education at the American Kidney Fund, told Health Digest that well-known risk factors of CKD are family history, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Obesity is also associated with your risk of CKD because it increases your risk of diabetes and high blood pressure.
“What people may not know is that chronic, long-term use or overuse of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen or naproxen, is also associated with an increased risk of developing or worsening CKD due to NSAIDs’ impact on kidney function,” she said.
Why NSAIDs can lead to kidney damage
You might reach for an NSAID to knock out that headache or relieve pain from a nagging knee injury. Some people might take ibuprofen every day to manage arthritis pain. Although NSAIDs are considered safe, these drugs can have side effects such as gastrointestinal pain or stomach ulcers.
“NSAIDs can reduce blood flow to the kidneys, potentially leading to kidney damage over time, particularly in individuals with preexisting conditions like hypertension or diabetes,” Lakhani said. “To protect kidney function while using NSAIDs, it’s advisable to take the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible duration, avoid combining multiple NSAIDs, and stay well-hydrated.”
A standard dose of ibuprofen is one or two 200-milligram pills every four to six hours with a daily limit of 1,200 milligrams a day. Naproxen sodium (like Aleve) works on pain for 12 hours, so you shouldn’t take more than two 220-milligram pills in eight to 12 hours, with a 24-hour maximum of 660 milligrams a day. Lakhani suggests talking to your healthcare team about pain management if you have kidney disease.
Other habits linked to kidney disease
According to a 2013 report in Kidney International Supplements, smoking more than 20 cigarettes a day can also increase your risk of kidney disease, even in people who don’t have diabetes. Even if you don’t smoke that much, every five cigarettes a day significantly increases your serum creatinine levels. High serum creatinine levels suggest problems with your kidney function. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is also linked to CKD because OSA can increase your blood pressure, oxidative stress, and renal hypoxia.
A 2022 article in Frontiers in Nutrition looked at lifestyle factors and the risk of kidney disease in more than 470,000 people in the U.K. People who ate white bread, drank more than 4 cups of tea per day, and consumed processed meat were more likely to develop CKD. A healthy lifestyle that includes eating whole-grain bread and walking was associated with a lower risk of CKD. “Additionally, high sodium intake may indirectly harm the kidneys by contributing to high blood pressure, further increasing the risk of kidney disease,” Lakhani said.