Tina Turner Had Kidney Disease Before Her Death

Tina Turner died on May 24.

The 8-time Grammy winner was the first female ever featured on the cover of Rolling Stone.

In 2005, she won the Woman of the Year award.

Turner inspired millions with her domestic violence survival story.

(NewsReady.com) – Singer Tina Turner was one of the most beloved performers of all time. During her more than 60 years in the music industry, she was known as the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Throughout her career, Turner won eight Grammys and various other awards. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted her twice, and the Grammy Hall of Fame inducted her three times.

Sadly, she passed away on May 24, 2023. Though she lived a very long life, dying at the ripe age of 83, people are still curious about what might have led to her death. She regretted waiting so long to receive treatment for one disorder.

Health Issues

Turner suffered from a number of illnesses throughout her life, including high blood pressure. She’d suffered from chronic hypertension for decades but refused to treat it with conventional medication. Eventually, it proved too much for her kidneys and led to kidney disease and failure.

On March 9, World Kidney Day, Turner posted on Instagram about the health issue. She said that had she known hypertension was related to kidney disease, she “would have been spared a lot of suffering.” The singer documented her struggle with the disease on the website ShowYourKidneysLove.com.

According to Turner, she had difficulty accepting that she would have to treat her blood pressure with medication every day for the rest of her life. She explained that for far too long, she considered her “body an untouchable and indestructible bastion” After being diagnosed with high blood pressure in 1978, she “didn’t care much about it.” She said she didn’t ever remember anyone telling her about how it could impact her body. In 1985, she said her doctor gave her a prescription, but she didn’t think much about the disease.

Then, decades later, in 2009, the singer suffered from a stroke and learned her kidneys weren’t functioning well. She began taking her meds for a while but then “developed a fatal dislike of [the] pills” and decided to treat the disorder homeopathically. At her next appointment, she said she believed her kidney function had improved and her blood pressure had fallen, but instead, everything was worse.

Eventually, Turner had to go on dialysis and eventually received a kidney transplant after her husband donated an organ.

A Warning

High blood pressure impacts nearly half of the adult population in the United States, according to the CDC. It was a contributing or the primary cause of death for more than 691,000 people in America in 2021. The disease is defined by prolonged blood pressure that exceeds 130/80. It’s one of the leading causes of stroke, heart disease, and kidney failure.

It’s important for everyone to regularly monitor their blood pressure and seek help from a doctor if it’s elevated. Treating the disease early is so much easier than dealing with the implications of not doing anything about it. Tina Turner is proof of that.