LIVING WITH RENAL FAILURE | ISSUE 1-2021 RECIPE Naturally sweet honey and orange curd cheese mousse – a delightful dessert HEALTHY LIFESTYLE Gardening – the natural way to a healthier routine A PATIENT’S STORY Beating the odds by focusing on solutions TRAVEL STORY AMAZING TRANSYLVANIA So much more than just history ISSUE 1-2021 CONTENTS Dear readers, After more than a year of the coronavirus 10 A PATIENT’S STORY pandemic, what we’re all wanting most is After losing her eyesight to be able to get back to life without the and her kidney function risk of infection again. Especially during this difficult time, to a rare disease, this young it’s very important to look after yourself. Are you getting enough special moments to relax and woman went on to fulfill be happy in your personal everyday life? If your answer to that question is a spontaneous “No!”, her dreams. 20 then please read on — because this issue of share for care brings together lots of ideas to help you RECIPE boost the feel-good factor in your daily routine. A light yet luscious curd cheese dessert that relies on Our special medical topic this time is oral health and the importance of paying attention to it. 4 natural fruit and honey for Regular visits to the dentist and a daily teeth-cleaning program alone can effectively reduce the NEWS flavor and sweetness. risk of disease and inflammation in the mouth while at the same time making you feel healthier Coated balloons and better every day. improve the results of shunt angioplasty. We’re also introducing you in this issue to Nikoletta Horváth from Hungary — a young woman who with no exaggeration can be called a “happiness expert.” Although she lost her eyesight due to a rare disease and has been dependent on dialysis for years, Nikoletta has been able to find her dream job as a journalist and is now a successful and extremely cheerful blogger and book author. 14TIPS Staying organized is a great Our travel story this time will be taking you — in your imagination, and maybe also in your practical way to streamline your life vacation plans for post-COVID times — to wild and romantic Transylvania. Colorful architecture, and avoid unnecessary stress – deep ravines and forests, and the best cuisine of Hungary and Romania will turn the trip into an helping you make the most allround experience. of your time. 22HEALTHY LIFESTYLE Gardening was probably Scientific evidence has now shown that gardening and other activities that give the senses plenty one of the first fitness of stimulation make people feel happier. When you’ve read our article about how good for you it 6 routines ever invented – and is to dig around in the soil, sniff the scent of flowers, or even just keep a house plant from wilting SPECIAL TOPIC it has so much more to offer Oral health – from proper every day, you’ll be wanting to get more greenery into your life. for mind, body, and soul. dental care to maintaining healthy flora within the Wishing you lots of fun reading this issue, mouth, good oral hygiene is Your editorial team a must for dialysis patients. 16 TRAVEL STORY We all know the stories, but in Christopher Boeffel Martin Kuhl reality, Transylvania is one of the most beautiful and inviting P.S. Please write to tell us how you like the issue — we’ll be delighted to regions of Eastern Europe – receive your letters, comments, and ideas, sent to [email protected]. waiting for you to come and explore! 2 | EDITORIAL CONTENTS | 3 NEWS EARWAX AS A STRESS RECORD EXERCISE SAVES It has not so far been possible to record long-term levels of the stress hormone hydrocortisone in the body, since blood samples only provide snapshots of it. But a research study has now shown that analyzing earwax — medi- cally termed cerumen — can COATED BALLOON document long-term con- People who exercise regularly centrations of the hormone. IMPROVES ANGIOPLASTY livesincrease their chances of living The fatty secretion inside When the dialysis shunt has narrowed and blood healthier and longer lives — and the ear stores hormones and is no longer passing through it properly, an angio- the same can apply to dialysis other substances. Diagnosing plasty procedure has to be carried out to widen the patients. A long-term study in a persistently high hydrocor- affected blood vessels and open them up again. This Europe and South America inves- tisone level is important for treatment, which uses a special balloon catheter, tigated the activity profiles of the treatment of psychiatric has so far often led to irritation and injury to the more than 6,000 dialysis-depen- diseases, among other things. vessel walls, which in turn can cause the vessels to dent people in connection with start narrowing again. A study including 29 treat- the rate of deaths from cardiovas- ment centers in the USA, Japan, and New Zealand cular and other diseases. Accord- has shown that adding an outer coating of paclitaxel ing to the study, individuals who to the balloon can lead to a substantial improvement stated that they were physically in the treatment. active at least twice a week had a nearly 25 percent reduction in the risk of fatal cardiovascular disease in comparison with those who said they were only occasionally active or were mostly sedentary. BLOOD TEST NEWS FOR A WIDE RANGE OF CANCERS Early detection of cancer using a blood test is one of the great unfulfilled ambitions in medicine – but we may now be a little closer to seeing this dream come true. A Nation- al Health Service study in Britain, including 165,000 participants, is to investigate the “Galleri test” over the next few years. The test identifies specific molecular changes in the blood, and this might make it possible to detect more than 50 types of cancer even years before symptoms start developing. 4 | NEWS 5 SA LI VA SPECIAL TOPIC AND DRY MOUTH Due to restrictions on the amounts they can drink, patients with renal insuf- ficiency often suffer from dry mouth and reduced salivation — a factor that The mouth promotes the development of caries and periodontitis. If not enough saliva is pres- HOW TO ent, food is transported KEEP IT HEALTHY from the mouth in a less liquefied form, and more AND WHY tends to be left on the IT’S SO IMPORTANT teeth. Sugar-free chewing gum is helpful for redu- cing dry mouth, and saliva People who live with a chronic Neither embarrassment about substitutes (e.g., based on disease like renal failure usually allegedly “poor teeth” nor a feel- hyaluronic acid) can also be have a full diary, with lots of spe- ing that “I’ve got quite enough recommended. cialist visits and treatments. Going other health problems” should to the dentist may not always be prevent you from visiting the top of the list. But it should be! dentist regularly and insisting on Because even if you don’t have a thorough diagnostic check on any dental pain or other symp- your dental health. toms, you should never dispense with regular visits to the dentist. Regular checking of oral health is important for the whole body, as The most frequent oral disease, the mouth is particularly exposed periodontitis, is present in 70 per- to the outside environment. The cent of the population and in as moist and warm interior cavity is much as 90 percent of older peo- used to ingest food every day. The ple. It is a hidden endemic disease problem is that the sugar contain- that develops ed in food is not only metabolized Regular checking of oral health unnoticed over in the digestive tract, but also is important for the whole body, a long period, feeds some of the more than 700 as the mouth is particularly and people with different types of bacteria that exposed to the outside environment. chronic diseases live in the mouth. The best-known such as diabetes of these are the bacteria that mellitus or weakened immune sys- cause dental caries, dissolving tems, like dialysis patients have, minerals out of the dental enamel are particularly susceptible to it. and thus leading to cavities in the At the same time, periodontitis teeth. also exposes them to particular risks. So it’s all the more impor- tant for everyone affected to pay good attention to oral health. 6 | SPECIAL TOPIC 7 SPECIAL TOPIC inflammation, periodontitis is a burden on PREVENTIVE CARE AND the immune system, and this can lead to MAINTENANCE deteriorating health in dialysis patients, OF TREATMENT SUCCESS whose immune systems are already wea- Correct tooth-brushing, either manual or kened. Reducing periodontitis is also an electric, is not enough. It is just as impor- absolute necessity for transplant patients, tant to clean the interdental spaces daily whose immune systems are deliberately as well, using special brushes or dental weakened by medication in order to redu- floss. Together with regular professional ce rejection reactions. dental cleaning (arranged with your den- tist), these three elements are promising Scientific research into the effects of peri- factors for success in maintaining impro- odontitis is by no means fully completed. ved conditions over the longer term. There is a consensus that periodontitis is associated with an increased risk of car- diovascular diseases, stroke, and diabetes mellitus. A recent study has shown that type 2 diabetic patients with untreated periodontitis develop severe renal disease more often than those with healthy gums. So there are already more than enough reasons to give much more attention to oral health than before.