Post Graduate Institute Principal Professor Dr Giyas-un-Nabi Tayyab said in Pakistan, presently, more than 20 million people are facing kidney related diseases, which is alarming. The basic awareness about kidneys is necessary for everyone; therefore, media must play its role in this regard, he added.
Professor Tayyab said healthy kidneys are essential for human health, adding the number of patients with kidney problem is on the rise throughout the world and every fifth person is suffering from kidney complication in the American and European countries.
Professor Tayyab expressed these views while addressing a symposium organised by urology and nephrology departments at Lahore General Hospital on the eve of World Kidney Day. The function was also addressed by Professor Dr Sajjad Hussain, Professor Muhammad Nazir, Dr Aurangzaib Afzal, Professor Muhammad Moin, Professor Ahsan Numan and Professor Khalid Waheed through their research and articles.
The speakers said that medical research conducted throughout the world proved that obesity not only affects the kidneys but also causes high blood pressure and diabetes. The function of kidneys in the human body is to clean the blood, to keep balance among minerals and to control acidity in the human stomach, they said.
Speaking on the occasion, a speaker highlighted that 18 per cent male and 21 per cent female population can fall prey to obesity up till 2025. The speakers also revealed that the two major reasons for kidney problems in Pakistan are diabetes and blood pressure. They observed that diabetes, blood pressure, infection, obesity are the factors which must be controlled to overcome kidney diseases. They were off the view that process of kidney transplant is very much complicated in Pakistan. With the passage of time, these problems are being reduced in the government hospitals as well as commercial medical institutes.
They said that a large number of poor patients can be helped in this connection if the government could make the process of kidney transplant easier. The speakers stressed upon the masses to immediately consult doctors in case of a kidney problem. They advised people to drink more water and adopt the habits of eating balanced food, along with regular exercise.