’Tis the season for giving, and some people are taking it to the extreme. Thirteen people donated their kidneys for what they’re calling a “kidney swap.” Donors had nothing to gain, but because of their generosity 13 lucky recipients have a little extra to be merry about this Christmas.

 

End-stage renal disease, also known as kidney failure, can’t be treated with medication. When the kidneys cannot function, the body can’t filter out its wastes, and the person will eventually die. The only way for a person to survive this condition is to undergo dialysis or receive a kidney transplant.

 

This is one of the largest kidney swaps that’s ever occurred, the Associated Press reported. Donations such as this do more than just help the kidney recipients. They cut the wait list and give hope to the entire pool of patients who need kidneys.

 

Transplants are very complicated procedures, and much of the difficulty lies in finding a compatible donor. In the United States, nearly 105,000 people are waiting for an organ transplant. It is estimated that another 4,000 are added each month.

 

Patients waiting for an organ must register with the National Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). This registry helps match patients with the most compatible donors. The shortage of kidneys makes this process extremely difficult, and only a small number of patients are ever lucky enough to receive one.

 

Finding a compatible donor can take years. Because of the donation, however, the wait was cut significantly. Doctors from Georgetown University Hospital and Washington Hospital Center completed the 26 operations in just six days.

 

Five of the recipients needed to undergo a procedure known as plasmapheresis, a process of filtering the blood to retain antibodies that will keep the body from rejecting the kidney. All of the donations were life-saving operations.

 

"People keep wanting to know why, why, why," donor Sylvia Glaser, 69, says. "It sounds very trite but you pass through this world, and what do you ever do that makes a difference? You are giving someone a life, and there is no substitute for that."

 

Although they were complete strangers prior to the donation, donors and recipients were finally able to meet for the first time this Tuesday.

Your vitamin regimen may be boosting more than your immunity/metabolism. Certain herbal supplements can also increase blood lead levels.

A study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. investigates the effects different herbal supplements on blood lead levels. Supplements with high heavy metals levels included Ayurvedic herbs, echinacea, ginseng, St. John’s wort, bee pollen, ginko, and nettle.

Lead exposure can result in medical complications, including high blood pressure, kidney disease, cancer, heart disease and peripheral artery disease. High blood lead levels also pose a risk for women planning to become pregnant. Lead can lead to pregnancy complications for both the mother and the developing child.

“Among adults, the potential implications of low-level lead exposure are most relevant to women of child-bearing age,” study authors write. “As lead is especially harmful to developing nervous systems of fetuses and children and passes through the placenta and breast milk.”

Researchers recruited 6,712 Unites States women in good health who were of reproductive age—20 or more years old. Participants self-reported their vitamin regimen for 30 days, and were divided into groups based on the type of supplements they used.

Women who took these supplements had significantly higher lead levels than women who took other herbal medicines. Blood lead levels of women who took Ayurvedic supplements were 24 percent higher than non-users. St. John’s wort wasn’t far behind with 23 percent higher levels.

Greater lead levels were not seen in individuals who used other supplements, such as garlic. Researchers acknowledge that these supplements can have some beneficial effects on personal health, but recommend firmer regulations.

“Our data suggest testing guidelines for herbal supplements,” they write, “and regulations limiting lead in supplements are needed.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning to avoid any infant formula imported from China because of potential contamination with melamine. Melamine was the chemical that contaminated pet food last year, resulting in thousands of poisoning cases in dogs and cats. There is no evidence that any tainted formula is being sold in the U.S. In China, the implicated formula has been associated with dozens of cases of kidney stones in infants and one death.

Manufacturing of baby formula is strictly regulated in the U.S. and it is illegal to import baby milk from China or any unapproved sources. But several years ago, in at least one case, a Chinese brand of formula was found in a New York store.

To be safe, parents should only purchase infant formula from reputable retail sources.

Have questions about about infant formula? Healia Communities members can help.