Confirm with your doctor whether drinking alcohol is safe: Limiting alcohol intake can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of kidney damage.
Avoid medications that may be harmful to the kidneys, especially nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs): Make sure your doctor knows all prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, and herbal medicines you are taking.
Promptly treat symptoms that can cause dehydration (such as diarrhea, vomiting, or fever) to avoid dehydration: Be extra careful in hot weather or during exercise, and drink plenty of water.
Avoid actions that may cause blood loss, such as unnecessary surgery: Do not donate whole blood or plasma.
Control blood pressure: Because high blood pressure can worsen kidney damage.
Treat diseases that obstruct normal urine flow, such as kidney stones, enlarged prostate, or bladder diseases.
Lower the risk of heart disease: Lifestyle changes (such as eating heart-healthy foods), quitting smoking, and regular exercise help reduce the overall risk of heart disease and stroke.
Avoid X-ray examinations that require intravenous contrast agents, such as angiography, intravenous pyelography, and certain CT scans. Intravenous contrast agents can further damage the kidneys. If you must undergo such examinations, make sure your doctor knows you have diabetic nephropathy.