Get to Know Your Kidneys

Even though they play essential roles in our health and wellness, our kidneys don’t get a lot of love and attention — and unless we have a kidney infection or a kidney stone, there’s a good chance we never even think about them.

But our kidneys are vital to our health. As filters for our blood, our kidneys remove excess fluids and wastes while regulating electrolytes and minerals necessary for normal function. Plus, they play an important role in managing blood pressure and producing red blood cells.

In short, you need healthy kidneys to live. If your kidneys are badly damaged or chronically diseases, you can wind up needing ongoing care, dialysis, or even a kidney transplant.

As a leading nephrologist in Dearborn, Michigan, Chadi Saad, MD, wants patients at Nephrocare MD LLC, to get to know their kidneys better. In this post, he offers a quick overview of the kidneys, along with some tips on what steps you can take to keep your kidneys healthy.

Kidneys 101

You have two kidneys located in your lower belly toward your back. Each kidney is a bean-shaped organ about the size of a closed fist.

Your kidneys are part of your urinary tract. Inside each kidney is a series of tiny structures called nephrons that filter your blood, removing wastes and fluids so they can be excreted in your urine.

Once your kidneys finish filtering your blood, the excess fluids and waste products pass through tubes called ureters into your bladder, which acts as a storage unit for your urine.

If your kidneys are damaged or diseased, they can’t filter your blood the way they should. When the filtering system breaks down, wastes and toxins can build up in your blood, along with excess minerals, glucose, and other products that can cause serious health problems.

Quick facts about kidney disease

Your kidneys can be damaged in different ways. A physical injury like a car accident can damage your kidneys, but often, damage happens as a result of acute kidney injury (AKI) or chronic kidney disease (CKD).

AKI can be caused by kidney infections, serious illnesses, low blood pressure, recent surgery, pregnancy, or prescription or illicit drug use. AKI has a sudden onset, and when diagnosed early, it often can be successfully managed.

CKD happens gradually, often as the result of an underlying medical problem, like:

High blood pressure
Diabetes
Polycystic kidney disease
Kidney inflammation
Recurrent kidney infection
Family history of CKD

Frequent kidney stones that block your urine flow can eventually lead to CKD, as well.

CKD treatment focuses on slowing or stopping progressive kidney damage. If damage continues, you may need dialysis to perform the same filtering functions as your kidneys, and eventually, you might need a kidney transplant.

Keep your kidneys healthy

The best way to keep your kidneys healthy is to lead a healthy lifestyle. That includes:

Watching your sodium intake
Drinking plenty of fluids
Limiting alcohol and avoiding illicit drug use
Quitting smoking
Incorporating 30 minutes of aerobic exercise into your daily routine
Eating plenty of colorful fruits and vegetables
Maintaining a healthy weight

If you take prescription medicines or use over-the-counter medicines regularly, talk to your doctor about their potential effects on your kidneys.

It’s also important to have regular physical exams with blood tests and urinalysis to keep track of your kidney health. Managing your blood pressure and underlying conditions, like diabetes, is also vitally important. And of course, call the office at the first sign of a urinary tract infection or any change in your urinary habits.

If you have a family history of kidney problems or any other risk factors associated with CKD, scheduling a kidney evaluation is an important step toward preventing kidney disease. To learn more, call 313-960-6605 or book an appointment online with Dr. Saad and the team at Nephrocare MD LLC today.