5 Surprising Ways You Could Be Damaging Your Kidneys
The kidneys (2) are two bean shaped like organs found in human being usually at the left and right part close to the human legs (internally). They help to filter waste products in the body like urine, faeces. If one fails as a result of what one takes or do the other can work alternative which is not a good idea. Failure of the two means if it cannot be treated the person involve will need to use the dialysis machine. It is necessary you avoid anything that would cause kidney failure because it can cause death of an individual if it goes bad.
There are two ways you could be damaging your kidneys, or causing harm to it.
The first way is what you eat, secondly is what you do (attitude). I will take you straight to the do and don’ts to avoid kidney failure both ways combined together. Credits to Kimberly Snyder and Huffpost for their contribution.
Stagnancy: If you spend most evenings planted on the couch, chips in one hand and the remote in the other, you probably know you’re not winning the healthy living award. While some habits are commonly accepted as unhealthy, there are other everyday behaviours that don’t seem harmful but in actuality may be damaging your body. Could you be harming your kidneys without realizing it?
March is National Kidney Month, and there isn’t a better time to learn more about these vital organs. Your kidneys keep the body healthy by regulating blood pressure and filtering out toxins and extra fluid from your blood. Damage to the kidneys is often irreversible, so in honour of National Kidney Month, find out the five surprising ways that you could be damaging your kidneys. Using painkillers for a long duration of time. Long-term use of certain pain medications, especially at high doses, has a harmful effect on kidney tissue and structures. Both over-the-counter and prescription pain medications can damage and reduce blood flow to the kidneys. Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) are a main culprit. As many as1 to 3 percent of new cases of chronic kidney failure each year may be caused by pain medication overuse.
Smoking cigarettes: The ramifications of smoking on the lungs and heart are well-publicized, but studies also show that people who smoke are more likely to have protein in the urine, which is a sign of kidney damage. Diseases that affect the kidneys, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, are also exacerbated by smoking, and smokers are more likely to need dialysis or kidney transplants.
Taking in lots of sugar: It’s probably pretty obvious that your morning doughnut and the candy bowl on your desk are overloaded with sugar, but sugar can be hiding in some surprising places. For example, it can lurk in your sandwich bread and even your salad dressing. Too much sugar can lead to health problems such as diabetes and obesity, both risk factors for kidney disease. Eliminating sugar from your diet or reducing your sugar intake can reduce your risk for diabetes, obesity and kidney disease. If you cut back on the processed sugars, you’re also likely to lose calories, chemicals and sodium. Your waistline and your kidneys will thank you.
Exposure to contrast dyes commonly used in imaging. It’s important to make sure your physicians check your kidney function before you undergo any radiology procedures, such as CT scans, certain X-rays and angiograms. The dyes they must inject into your body to complete these tests can cause serious kidney problems, including Acute Kidney Injury or AKI. AKI results in an abrupt decrease in kidney function and occurs in up to 20 percent of all hospitalized patients and over 45 percent of patients in a critical care setting. Discuss any concerns you may have with your doctor before undergoing a procedure.
Excessive consuming of sodium chloride: Large quantities of sodium can increase blood pressure levels. High blood pressure damages the kidneys over time and is a leading cause of kidney failure. The typical American diet has been estimated to contain about3, 300 mg of sodium per day, a figure substantially higher than the 2,300 mg daily maximum (about a teaspoon of salt) recommended by the government for healthy adults. The figure drops to 1,500 mg each day for those with health conditions such as high blood pressure or kidney disease. Start by cutting back on processed foods and resisting the urge to pick up the salt shaker. Another way to lower your dietary salt intake is by following the DASH Diet. DASH is an acronym for the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. A high salt intake coupled with obesity is a recipe for disaster. This combination is particularly potent at speeding the complications of high blood pressure, heart disease and kidney disease.
Excessive intake of proteins: let me take for example beans the end product of beans is cholesterol which is useless to the body unlike glucose. It can cause kidney damage. In fact, according to theMayo Clinic, a high-protein diet may cause or exacerbate existing kidney problems because protein metabolism places a heavy load on the kidneys, making it difficult to eliminate its waste products.
In 2003, a study in the European Journal of Nutrition showed that a diet rich in animal-based proteins could also increase the risk of developing kidney stones from uric acid, while a vegetarian diet lowered the uric acid and prevented formation of stones. Uric acid is one of the common causes of kidney stone and is a by-product of eating foods that are high in purines such as meat, seafood, and fish. These foods may also trigger the other common type of kidney stones, calcium oxalate stones, because they increase the amount of calcium excreted in urine, as well as affect your digestive probiotics. How? Animal protein metabolism leaves an acidic residue in the body. Because your body favours an alkaline state, it pulls calcium and other mineral salts from the bones in order to return you to that alkaline state. This calcium can form calcium oxalate kidney stones.
Instead, eat a variety of veggies, grains, seeds, and nuts (the best foods to eat while pregnant!) and you’ll get all of the protein your body needs.
Also note that storing urine is not a good idea. It is a very bad practise that can affect the kidney. Most kidney failure begins at old age.
Curled from a source on the inernet