The kidney is one of the organs responsible for the elimination of waste products of metabolism. If you want to healthy life you must follow this tips for a healthy kidney. It also helps a great deal in the regulation of blood pressure and blood glucose levels. As age crops in, the kidney tends to lose its function. Chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, if unchecked, can cause end stage kidney disease earlier than expected.
A kidney that is not performing optimally can adversely affect the quality of life. It can cause fluid retention, electrolyte disturbance among other things. In serious situations, it can lead to death. As such, you need to make it a top priority keeping your kidney in healthy condition.
1. Stay fit and active
Keeping fit helps in reducing blood pressure and by extension reducing the chances of acquiring chronic kidney diseases. Researchers have also found out that staying fit increases the performance of the kidney.
2. Monitor your blood pressure
As alluded before, high blood pressure is one of the major causes of chronic kidney diseases. It is therefore important that you keep your blood pressure below 139/90 mm of mercury to reduce such risks. If you have high blood pressure, then it is important you are on medication to avoid kidney damage.
3. Monitor your blood glucose
Diabetes is also another cause of end-stage kidney disease. Long standing diabetes that is not under proper control causes diabetic nephropathy, which is characterized by the presence of proteins in the urine. By ensuring your blood sugar is within normal, you reduce such risks.
4. Keep hydrated
Whereas scientists are yet to agree on the amount of daily water intake, traditional wisdom dictates that about 1.5 to 2 liters of water is good for the body. Water helps the kidney in the excretion of waste products such as urea and sodium. Less water means that these substances will be accumulating, increasing the risk of chronic kidney disease.
5. Do not pop over the counter medication regularly
Some medications such as over the counter painkillers are toxic to the kidney. Regular intake of such drugs can lead to kidney damage. If you find yourself needing such medication, then it is advisable to see your doctor for proper medical evaluation. If you are taking medication for any chronic ailment such as HIV, you should visit your physician for regular kidney function tests to detect any sign of kidney damage.
6. Good Nutrition
Healthy eating ensures optimal weight and saves damage to blood vessels due to excess cholesterol. Cholesterol not only damages the blood vessels of the heart and the brain but also the kidney. Reducing salt intake in the diet helps to control blood pressure. If you want you can see here Effective tips for healthy eating. If you want you can see here effective tips for healthy eating.
7. Keep off tobacco
Smoking is a single factor that can increase the risk of very many diseases. It reduces blood flow to the kidney, which eventually impairs kidney function. Smoking is also a risk factor for kidney cancer.
The kidneys are important organs that we often not think about consciously. However, its malfunction can disrupt life a great deal. Taking care of the kidney is necessary for healthy living!
8. Reduce salt intake
Salt is a common seasoning in almost all foods. It is not bad to ingest salts, they are beneficial. However, if you take too many salts, it becomes toxic to your kidneys. If you want to improve your kidney health, ensure that you consume a minimum of 2,300 milligrams of sodium in a day.
9. Take Enough Water
You need to properly hydrate for your kidney to be healthy. Doctors recommend that one should take six to eight glasses of water depending on one’s activities. Therefore, if you want your kidney to be healthy ensure that you avoid overhydration and dehydration. When you get dehydrated, your kidneys will be forced to absorb toxins instead of expelling them. Also, it leads to water retention and a limited flow of blood to your kidneys. On the other hand, when you get overhydrated, you overload your kidneys.
10. Eat a Balanced Diet
Which are the foods that are good for your kidneys? For a healthy kidney, you need to eat healthy foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables and foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. These foods lower the risk of being overweight and getting associated with diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure. You need to avoid processed foods, and also reduce the intake of foods with high saturated fats and cholesterol.
11. Do Regular Exercises
It is good practice to keep fit. When you increase your physical activity, you boost your kidney health both directly and indirectly. Exercising does not necessarily need to be intense. When you walk, swim, or dance you increase your overall health. You will gain the following benefits from exercising:
- Decrease blood pressure
- Increase muscle strength
- Lowers cholesterols
- Increase insulin sensitivity
- Improve sleep
- Maintain a healthy weight
When you keep fit, you minimize the risk of your kidneys getting damaged.
12. Avoid over the counter pills
Did you know that kidneys are very sensitive to painkillers? Regretfully, most people tend to manage pain using such pills. You need to limit the intake of ibuprofen and naproxen. These pills have the following downsides:
- It reduces the amount of blood flow to the kidneys.
- It strains the kidneys.
These over-counter pills are toxic and can greatly damage your kidneys. Therefore, you should minimize the intake or simply avoid it completely. You can seek alternative pain management options.
13. Manage Your Blood Sugar levels
If you are diabetic, you are at a high risk of kidney damage. Diabetic people have too much glucose in their blood. This is as a result of less sensitive or low production of insulin. Insulin is responsible for breaking down sugars to release energy. So, when there is much glucose in your blood, your kidneys will strain to purify the blood. Diabetes is a pretty manageable disease. If you control the number of your blood sugars, your kidneys will be healthy.
14. Manage Your Weight
Obesity is associated with so many health complications. To be on the safe side, ensure that you check your weight. When you are overweight, you risk suffering from diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure. All these diseases harm your kidneys. Therefore, before it is too late, manage your weight for you to have a healthy kidney.
15. Manage Your Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is another manageable disease just like diabetes. A normal person should have a blood pressure reading of 120/80. A person with high blood pressure has more than 140/90 reading. Managing blood pressure involves taking medication and also maintaining a healthy lifestyle. You should control the amount of salt and fluid intake, as well as a good diet to manage blood pressure. Just like diabetes, high blood pressure overloads the kidney and end up damaging it. Therefore, you should maintain a healthy lifestyle whether you have high blood pressure or not to make your kidneys healthy.
Additional Tips
1. Stop Smoking
Smoking is a very harmful practice. When you smoke, your body organs fail to function well. Tobacco damages your kidneys as well. How is smoking harmful to your kidneys? When you smoke, it limits the amount of blood supply to the kidneys. When this persists, your kidneys will end up failing. Therefore, avoid smoking at all costs if you want your kidney to remain healthy.
2. Restrict Alcohol Intake
How is alcohol harmful to your kidneys? Taking alcohol has been associated with gaining weight. When you take alcohol you risk gaining weight which in turn affects your kidneys function. Moreover, taking alcohol increases blood pressure. High blood pressure on the other hand contributes to kidney complications. Therefore, if you have to, just take a bottle or two of alcohol once in a while. When you restrict heavy alcohol intake, your kidney will be healthy.
Wrapping up
In conclusion, it is all about living a healthy lifestyle. That’s simply how to improve kidney health. You need to ensure that you watch what you eat and what you do. Ensure that your diet is balanced and your lifestyle is good. This will prevent you from suffering from diseases. Normally, one health complication leads to the other. Therefore, before you can start having a series of body complications, try to manage as early as possible. When your kidney is healthy, fewer body toxins will accumulate in your system. So, you need to take care of your kidneys for them to protect you against harmful toxins. Adopt the above tips and you will have to smile because of good health every day.
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