The American Heart Association's 2026 statistics update reveals a significant gap in public awareness about the interconnected nature of heart, kidney and metabolic health, with millions of Americans unaware they have conditions that dramatically increase their risk for heart disease and stroke. According to the report, nearly one in four U.S. adults with diabetes are unaware of their condition, while Centers for Disease Control data indicates as many as 90% of adults with chronic kidney disease do not know they have it. This lack of awareness is particularly concerning because these conditions are closely linked through cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome (CKM syndrome), where having one condition increases the likelihood of developing the others.
The medical connection between heart disease, kidney disease and diabetes represents a major public health challenge. Shared risk factors including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, excess weight and reduced kidney function create a cascade effect that can lead to disability and death from cardiovascular events. The Association's statistics report indicates screening for kidney disease could be significantly improved, as two-thirds of patients with high blood pressure or diabetes are unaware they also have kidney disease due to lack of uACR testing, a urine test for kidney function. For people with diabetes or high blood pressure, two screening tests for kidney health are suggested: the uACR urine test and eGFR blood test.
"We are encouraging people to become aware of the connection between conditions so they and their health care team can think about their overall health beyond individual conditions," said Stacey E. Rosen, M.D., FAHA, volunteer president of the American Heart Association. "Understanding the connection helps you better prevent complications through lifestyle changes and appropriate treatment." Rosen emphasizes that regular screening can catch problems early, as approximately 80% of heart attacks and strokes are preventable, according to the Association. Risk factors often develop slowly with few or no initial symptoms, making systematic screening crucial.
The Association's 2026 statistics show alarming prevalence rates: about half of all U.S. adults have high blood pressure, approximately one in three has high total cholesterol, more than half have prediabetes or diabetes, over half have a high waist circumference, and about one in seven has kidney disease. Screening for CKM syndrome may include blood pressure measurement, cholesterol panel, blood glucose testing, body weight and size measurements, and kidney function tests using both UACR and eGFR. Healthcare professionals can use results from these tests in the PREVENT online calculator to estimate individual cardiovascular disease risk over the next 10 or 30 years.
The American Heart Association has launched a specific Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic Health Initiative to raise awareness of CKM syndrome connections and improve diagnosis rates. Supported by founding sponsors Novo Nordisk and Boehringer Ingelheim, with additional support from Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Bayer, and champion sponsor DaVita, the initiative is enrolling 150 healthcare sites across 15 U.S. regions to participate in learning and sharing best practices for interdisciplinary care of CKM syndrome. This effort is expected to impact the care of more than a quarter-million patients. CKM syndrome is both preventable and treatable through healthy habits like those in Life's Essential 8 and evidence-based treatments that can improve multiple health conditions simultaneously.
