Diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes, has become so common that diabetic kidney disease (nephropathy) has leaped ahead of high blood pressure as the leading cause of kidney failure in much of the world. Kidney failure is a serious matter: The kidneys' job is to filter waste products and excess fluids from the blood circulating through our bodies. If the kidneys fail, survival depends on either dialysis (being hooked up to a machine to do the kidneys' blood-filtering) or a kidney transplant.

High blood glucose levels can damage blood vessels all over the body, including the tiny blood vessels that do the kidneys' filtering. When those tiny vessels are damaged, they can't do the job correctly. High blood pressure can result and make the problem worse, damaging more blood vessels and speeding up the progression of kidney disease. Both kidneys are affected. Though 20-40 percent of those with diabetes develop kidney disease, it can be slowed significantly if diagnosed early and treated.