R 109
2017 -- H 5899
Enacted 03/09/2017

H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N
PROCLAIMING MARCH 9, 2017, TO BE "WORLD KIDNEY DAY" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

Introduced By: Representatives Corvese, Azzinaro, Winfield, O'Brien, and Edwards
Date Introduced: March 09, 2017

     WHEREAS, World Kidney Day is a global awareness campaign aimed at raising
awareness of the importance of our kidneys, and about preventive behaviors, risk factors, and
how to live with a kidney disease; and
     WHEREAS, About the size of one's fist, the kidneys are complicated and amazing organs
that remove toxins and excess water from our blood and help to regulate blood pressure by
controlling the salt and water in the body, in order to produce red blood cells and keep bones
healthy; and
     WHEREAS, World Kidney Day was first started in 2006 and has grown in both
participation and scope ever since and each year, World Kidney Day highlights a different
campaign theme; and
     WHEREAS, The focus of this year's World Kidney Day is obesity and the ways in which
we can promote education about its harmful consequences and its association with kidney
disease; and
     WHEREAS, Obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may
impair health. In 2014, over 600 million adults were considered obese worldwide, and by 2025,
obesity will affect 18 percent of men and over 21 percent of women worldwide, and severe
obesity will affect 6 percent of all men and 9 percent of all women; and
     WHEREAS, In some nations, obesity is already present in more than one-third of the
adult population and contributes significantly to overall poor health and high annual medical
costs; and
     WHEREAS, Kidney disease is more likely to develop in obese people including in those
with diabetes and hypertension. In addition, obesity increases the risk of death and contributes to
many other diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, obstructive
sleep apnea, fatty liver, gall bladder disease, osteoarthritis, various cancers, mental disorders, and
poor quality of life; and
     WHEREAS World Kidney Day is an event that provides the opportunity to advocate for
healthy lifestyle choices, and to promote health policy measures that will make preventive
behaviors an affordable option; now, therefore be it
     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations hereby proclaims March 9, 2017, to be "World Kidney Day" in the State
of Rhode Island. We urge and encourage all the citizens of the state to learn about healthy choices
to prevent kidney disease; and be it further
     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to
transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Director Nicole Alexander-Scott, Rhode Island
Department of Health, and The National Kidney Foundation.
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LC002105
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