High blood pressure and kidney disease: what African Caribbean communities need to know
- Candice McKenzie
- May 14
- 4 min read
Updated: May 14
Did you know that approximately one in three adults in the UK has high blood pressure?
Shockingly, half of these individuals are undiagnosed and are not receiving treatment. Also known as hypertension, in England alone, more than five million people remain undiagnosed.
Hypertension is more common, and often more severe, in African Caribbean communities. When left untreated, it can quietly damage the small blood vessels in the kidneys for years before any symptoms appear, if any.
Over time, high blood pressure can make your kidneys work less effectively, so they cannot filter out waste from your body. Excess waste in your body can raise your blood pressure even higher and hurt your kidneys even more. It’s a vicious cycle which can possibly lead to kidney failure.
As we strive for better health, it is essential to understand the significant impact hypertension can have on our well-being, particularly on our kidneys.
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tailored for the African Caribbean community
High blood pressure and kidney disease: what African Caribbean communities need to know
Understanding Hypertension and Kidney Health
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a chronic condition with serious health implications. It can be caused by various unhealthy lifestyle habits such as high salt intake, lack of physical activity, being overweight, excessive alcohol consumption, and smoking. Additionally, age, genetics, and ethnicity can also influence its development.
How does it link to kidney disease and what do African Caribbean communities need to know
High blood pressure can lead to serious health problems such as heart disease, heart attacks and heart failure, stroke, vision loss and chronic kidney disease (CKD).
Uncontrolled hypertension is one of the leading causes of CKD. It can slowly damage the kidneys over time, leading to a gradual loss of kidney function. Prolonged hypertension can result in kidney failure, where the kidneys lose their ability to function properly, resulting in needing dialysis, or a kidney transplant, to survive.
This is why it is so important for you to know your numbers and to take action if they are out of control, along with drinking enough water to keep you hydrated, quitting smoking, reducing your alcohol intake and limiting your use of over the counter painkillers such as ibuprofen and naproxen.
CKD and me
I speak to you from lived experience. In April 2019, I was diagnosed with stage 4 IgA Nephropathy, also known as Berger's disease, a kidney disease with autoimmune origins and varying symptoms that went unnoticed for years and only presented the year that I was diagnosed.
Although "autoimmune" refers to a condition where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks its tissues, bouncing between elevated and high blood pressure since my early 30’s put an additional strain on my kidneys and accelerated the progression of kidney damage, leading to a decline in my kidney function. Although it was known that I had raised blood pressure, it was left untreated for years for various reasons, from being told by medical professionals that I was too young to have hypertension to believing that my BP readings were “normal” for me. I now know this to be untrue and is one of the many reasons why I heavily advocate that you have regular checks, know your numbers and continue pushing for answers if something does not feel right.
As the disease progressed, my kidneys failed (known as end-stage renal disease), and in 2022, I began dialysis as part of my ongoing treatment. It was whist I was receiving dialysis treatment that I was inspired to set up the African Caribbean Kidney Education Enterprise® (ACKEE) to provide kidney health education, advocacy and support to the community so that you can avoid being in a similar position as me, especially as people from Black communities are five times more likely to develop CKD than other groups.
After 1249 days (3.5 years) I received a life changing kidney transplant in September 2025.
It is vital that your blood pressure is kept under control, which in turn will help you maintain good kidney health.
So what can you do?
A | Adopt healthy lifestyle habits – maintain a healthy weight for your height and body type and make choices that support your long-term health and wellbeing.
C | Consume a balanced diet – eat fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. Make small changes to reduce salt intake, including limiting processed and takeaway foods, choosing foods where the nutritional labels are green, using unsalted butter, avoiding adding salt when boiling foods such as pasta, rice, and potatoes and not adding salt when cooking stews and soups especially if you are already adding other seasoning.
Salt can be hidden in many everyday foods, so small changes can make a difference.
K | Keep an eye on your blood pressure – check your blood pressure regularly with your GP, as well as monitoring it at home with a home blood pressure machine.
E | Educate yourself on the risks of uncontrolled hypertension – High blood pressure can cause kidney damage, and kidney damage can cause high blood pressure. If you have diabetes, heart disease, lupus, or a family history of kidney disease and/or hypertension, regular kidney function screenings and check-ups are important, alongside taking your prescribed medications as advised.
E | Engage with ACKEE and your community Got a question? Send us a message. Follow us on social media: @wearetheACKEE on Facebook and Instagram. Engage with your community and share this information. Encourage them to make healthier lifestyle choices.
Could high blood pressure be affecting your kidneys without you knowing?
How you can support ACKEE:
Share – Share this blog and ACKEE’s work to raise awareness about kidney health
Donate – ACKEE’s work is only possible thanks to champions like you. Make a donation today. Your generosity helps ACKEE provide education and resources to the African Caribbean community.
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