Chronic kidney disease is on the rise globally. In the past few decades, health officials have identified a surprising trend of people who developed the disease but didn’t have traditional risk factors like diabetes or high blood pressure.
They tended to be agricultural or outdoor workers who were exposed to high heat. As a result, researchers are increasingly looking at how environmental factors play a role.
A new study published in the American Meteorological Society’s Weather, Climate and Society journal investigates the connection.
Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and the University of Washington wanted to see if weather conditions could explain why the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado has a higher prevalence of chronic kidney disease than state and national averages.
They analyzed historical weather data alongside results from a long-term health study conducted in the valley in the 1980s and '90s.
Their findings revealed a significant association: When humidity levels were low, study participants were more likely to show poor kidney function in health exams.
“The drier it is, the greater the odds that a person is developing acute kidney injury over time,” said Francesca Macaluso, a research scientist at the Colorado School of Public Health and a lead author.
Acute kidney injury, if not properly treated, can develop into a chronic condition.
The research team found that this significant association between relative humidity and kidney dysfunction was present no matter the patient's age or sex, or whether they had diabetes or hypertension.
Macaluso also noted that the health study predated a multi-decade drought in the San Luis Valley, meaning the impact of low humidity on kidney health may have intensified since then.
“We saw a clear relationship between these things in a period where these climate factors were not as extreme as they are now,” she said.
She emphasized the need for ongoing research into how heat and drought affect kidney health amid climate change.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
