Maintaining kidney health is vital to overall health and general well-being. The essential lifestyle changes we can adopt to keep a healthy kidney are followed
As you all know, kidneys are two bean-shaped organs, each about the size of a fist, located at the bottom of our rib cage on either side of our spine. Kidney plays a vital role in filtering waste products produced by our body. It also helps maintain blood PH, electrolyte balance, bone and mineral function, and produce RBC cells. It also plays a significant role in keeping our body blood pressure. So maintaining kidney health is vital in overall health and general well-being.
We spoke to Dr Harsha Kumar HN, a senior consultant nephrologist and transplant physician from Fortis Hospital, BG road, Bangalore, who revealed some essential lifestyle changes we can adopt to maintain a healthy kidney are followed.
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1. Keeping ourselves fit and active- regular exercise like walking, running, cycling, swimming or dancing at least 30 minutes daily.
2. Monitoring our Blood pressure -Hypertension as we all know, is an important cause for renal failure. It is very important to control our blood pressure by regularly monitoring and taking antihypertensive medications regularly as prescribed by your physician to maintain a healthy kidney.
3. Monitoring of blood sugars- Diabetes Mellitus is a common disease worldwide, affecting about 25 % of adults. About 30 % of uncontrolled diabetics develop kidney problems and renal failure over a few years. It is very important to monitor and control our sugars by taking oral hypoglycemic agents and insulin as your physician advised to maintain a healthy kidney.
4. Monitoring weight and eating a balanced diet- It is very important to eat healthy food like fresh fruits and vegetables, and fresh ingredients that are naturally low in sodium such as cauliflower, blueberries, fish and whole grains. Avoid junk food and processed meat. If you are overweight or obese reduce your body weight with diet and regular exercise to maintain a healthy kidney.
5. Drink adequate water- It is very important to drink plenty of fluid daily to keep our kidneys healthy and to avoid stone formation in the kidneys. At least 1.5 to 2 liters of water should be taken. Factors like climate condition, age, gender, clinical condition like kidney stone patient, pregnancy, breast feeding and overall health should be considered while deciding on water intake. Adequate water intake helps us prevent stone formation and flushing our waste products produced by our body.
6. Stop Smoking and Moderation of alcohol intake– Smoking is a very important risk factor for hypertension and kidney damage. Smoking also increases the risk of few kidney-related cancers in the long run. It is very important to avoid smoking and stop or reduce alcohol intake to a minimal quantity to maintain a healthy kidney.
7. Avoid over-the-counter pills- As we all know that taking excessive NSAIDS like ibuprofen, naproxen and diclofenac for chronic ailments as chronic headaches, body aches and Osteoarthritis can damage the kidney and may result in renal failure. Herbal medication may contain heavy metals that can also damage the kidneys. So, it is better to avoid over-the-counter pills to maintain healthy kidneys.
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8. Get your kidney function test regularly- It is very important for all of us to get our kidney function test and urine examination yearly once to identify kidney ailment as soon as possible. Patients with risk factors as a history of kidney stones, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, family history of renal disease, obesity and age of more than 60 years should get tested for kidney function more frequently to prevent chronic kidney disease.
By adopting these simple lifestyle changes we can identify and prevent chronic kidney disease and maintain healthy kidneys and overall well-being.
