How Diabetes Lead To Kidney Failure

The proteins we eat, when digested, lead to waste products that are filtered out by the blood vessels in the kidneys. When blood flows through these blood vessels, small waste products try to squeeze through the blood vessels and become part of the urine.

Diabetes damages the normal flow of the kidneys' functioning. High blood sugar levels cause over-filtering of blood, making the filters work hard. After years of overexertion, they begin to leak and any useful protein escapes into the urine. Over time, the stress of working too hard causes the kidneys to lose their ability to filter waste products. As a result, these waste products build up in the blood. Eventually, they cease working and a condition called End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) or in layman's term, kidney failure, sets in. In this condition, a patient needs to have a transplant or go through dialysis.

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