Mostly kidney problems are perceived to be a result of poor lifestyle. However, unlike other lifestyle diseases, Kidney problems don’t come knocking on your doors with an alarm, they just thrash in unannounced.Kidney diseases are silent killers and once any kind of kidney problems occurs, it gets the best of you.
There several kidney problems that anyone can suffer from. They could be easily manageable issues like kidney stones, kidney infection, kidney pain and kidney injury. There could also be more worrisome issues which are both difficult and expensive to manage like Chronic Kidney Diseases (CKD) which eventually can lead to kidney failure.
Kidney is that organ of our body which filters the waste from the blood and keeps the nutrients inside. Thus, when there is any abnormality in the kidney the most common symptoms are weakness, lethargy, shortness of breath, blood in urine, swelling and confusion.
In India, because of nutrition issues during pregnancy, many children are born with less than 2.5 kg weight, leading to smaller kidney volume which can lead to poor filtration rate and an early onset of chronic kidney diseases. People who consume adulterated foods, foods with heavy metals, or unapproved medicines given by quacks have a higher chance of burdening their kidneys with toxins and heavy metals which cause kidney diseases. The biggest cause of chronic kidney disease and kidney failure in India are diabetes and hypertension.
If caught early, kidney diseases can be cured and taken care of. Therefore, why wait to let the catastrophe happen when you can prevent it.
Here are a few ways you can keep yourself and your kidney healthy to avoid any nasty surprises.
Eat a healthy diet
It is a no-brainer that to keep your organs functioning at their best, you should eat natural, healthy food. It’s not just for kidneys, but having a healthy diet on a regular basis improves physical, mental and emotional health, and makes all your organs work top-notch.
Drink the right quantity of water and fluids
Water helps kidneys remove wastefrom your blood in the form of urine. Water also helps keep your blood vessels unclogged so blood can travel freely to your kidneys and deliver essential nutrients to them. If one gets severely dehydrated, it can cause the water flow system of the body to collapse leading to kidney damage. So, it’s important to keep yourself hydrated during heavy exercise or in warm or humid weather. However, excessive amount of water can also put extra burden on your kidneys, so listen to your ‘thirst sense’ and consume enough water during the day. The best way to check if you are having enough water is by the colour of your urine, it should be pale yellow and not dark yellow which depicts dehydration.
Be cautious about the pills you take
It seems the easiest way to get rid of many health problems by popping in a pill. But in long-term, taking medicines on a regular basis can do more harm than good. It is a proven fact that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen cause kidney damage if consumed repeatedly. Similarly, taking untested herbal formulations or overuse of any drug can burden your kidneys, as eventually all filtration has to be managed by your kidneys.
Keep an eye on your blood pressure and blood sugar
It is a very underrated fact that blood pressure and blood sugar are the major causes of kidney damage.Most people relate blood pressure to stroke or heart attack.High blood pressure is most likely to cause kidney damage when they are associated with other factors such as diabetes, high cholesterol and cardiovascular diseases.
Follows the simple steps and live a healthy life with perfectly healthy kidneys.
