At 23, life is supposed to feel wide open. Dreams should feel close enough to touch. For Kyle Terence Abanto, that age was meant to be the beginning—building a future as a photographer and videographer, chasing light, capturing stories. Instead, his life took a sharp turn when doctors delivered a diagnosis that sounded impossible for someone so young: stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD).
In one moment, plans collapsed. In the next, survival depended on a machine.
Kyle’s kidneys had completely stopped working. Three times a week. Four hours each session. Dialysis became his new routine, his new reality.
“It’s like a life sentence without bars,” he once said. And yet, there were no visible chains—only silent tubes, numbers on a screen, and time that no longer moved freely.
His story feels personal because it is. But it is also uncomfortable, because it is not unique.
Across the world, more young adults are quietly joining dialysis centers—people aged 20 to 40, still in their most productive years. In the Philippines alone, nearly seven million young adults are recorded as living with various stages of kidney disease. Data from the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) reveals a troubling shift: 57.44% of kidney disease patients are now between 20 and 59 years old, surpassing the elderly group that once dominated these statistics.
Indonesia faces the same reality. Even more alarming, many cases are detected only after reaching a critical stage, when options are limited and dialysis becomes unavoidable.
This is not a story about fate.
It is a story about lifestyle choices we normalize every day.
Meanwhile, the Evidence Shows a Dangerous Shift in Young Lifestyles
Kidney failure used to sound like a disease of age—something distant, something later. In the past, it was often caused by long-term complications such as diabetes, hypertension, or kidney inflammation. But since the early 2000s, the pattern has changed.
The trigger today is quieter, more familiar, and far more dangerous.
A fast-paced lifestyle.
Ultra-processed foods.
Constant exhaustion masked by convenience.
Kyle admits that his condition did not come from nowhere. Long work hours pushed him toward instant noodles, canned food, soda, and salty snacks—foods designed to save time, not protect organs. Add to that regular use of over-the-counter painkillers just to keep moving, and the damage slowly accumulated.
“I didn’t know any better,” Kyle said. “I ate whatever was easy because I was focused on achieving my goals.”
And that sentence alone explains why so many young people are at risk.
Ultra-processed foods (UPF) are high in sodium, preservatives, and artificial additives that force the kidneys to work overtime. When consumed daily, they silently strain kidney function. Painkillers, especially when used frequently without medical supervision, further increase the risk of kidney damage.
The tragedy is not ignorance—it is the absence of early warning systems.
Most early-stage kidney disease has no clear symptoms. No pain. No alarm. Until one day, the body simply can’t compensate anymore.
This is why routine kidney screenings—simple blood and urine tests—are no longer optional for young adults living high-pressure lifestyles. They are a form of self-respect.
If you are working long hours, relying on instant food, or frequently taking pain medication, early kidney function testing can detect problems before dialysis becomes your only option.
Prevention costs time.
Treatment costs life.
Then Comes the Invisible Weight: Mental and Emotional Consequences
Dialysis does not only drain blood. It drains hope, identity, and confidence—especially when it arrives too early.
Kyle struggled with severe depression and anxiety. While his peers moved forward—careers growing, relationships forming—his life felt paused. His body changed. Skin darkened. Swelling appeared as toxins built up inside him. Mirrors became enemies.
At an age when confidence should bloom, his began to fade.
This emotional burden is rarely discussed, yet it is one of the heaviest costs of chronic kidney disease. Young patients often experience isolation, financial stress, and a sense of lost potential.
The good news is this: early medical intervention can prevent this story from repeating.
Kyle eventually received a kidney transplant from a deceased donor. Slowly, life returned—not exactly as before, but with new meaning. Today, he shares his story on social media, not for sympathy, but as a warning.
“Why me?” he asks. “If there had been clear warnings about what I was eating and drinking, maybe my story would have been different.”
That question now belongs to all of us.
If you are young and feel healthy, that is precisely the moment to act. Kidney health checks, nutritional counseling, and lifestyle assessments are not signs of fear—they are signs of intelligence.
Modern healthcare services now offer early detection programs, dietary guidance, and personalized risk evaluations designed specifically for young professionals with fast-paced lives.
Your dreams deserve healthy organs to carry them.
Finally, Choosing Awareness Today Means Freedom Tomorrow
This is not a call to fear food or abandon ambition. It is a call to balance.
Success should not cost kidneys.
Convenience should not cost decades of life.
Kyle’s story reminds us that the body keeps score, even when we ignore it. What we eat, drink, and consume for “just one more day” eventually becomes a habit—and habits shape health.
If you are between 20 and 40 years old, now is the time to:
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Schedule routine kidney function tests
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Consult healthcare professionals about diet and medication use
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Reduce reliance on ultra-processed foods
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Choose preventive care over reactive treatment
Many trusted medical centers and kidney health services now provide affordable screening packages, early diagnosis programs, and expert guidance tailored to young adults.
Dialysis should never be the first discovery of kidney disease.
Let Kyle’s story be a mirror, not a prophecy.
Because health, once lost, demands everything—
but when protected early, it quietly protects your future in return.