Habits Of Kidneys

8 Daily Habits That Are Damaging Your Kidneys

Kidneys are the ones responsible for filtering the toxins from the body and eliminating excess water. Sadly, a lot of people seem to ignore its importance by consistently practicing poor habits that can directly bring negative repercussions to these organs. Kidney disease is a life-threatening one. In fact, kidney disease kills more people than breast or prostate cancer each year.

It was reported that over 47,000 Americans died from kidney disease in 2013, and the number continues to grow. Moreover, about 700,000 Americans suffer from kidney failure. Of these, around 500,000 people are seeking treatment through dialysis while approximately 200,000 are still living with a functioning kidney transplant.

However, renal blood flow substantially drops as a result of the body not getting sufficient amount of water. When this happens, toxins further build up in the body, making it harder for the kidneys to do their primary function. Hence, when it comes to protecting your kidneys, hydration is crucial.

2. Prolonging the need to urinate

Keeping your bladder full for a long time produces dire consequences for your kidneys. Not going to the bathroom right away to empty your bladder brings lots of health complications. For one, the development of diverticula is triggered by hypertrophy of the detrusor muscle. Hydronephrosis, or the urine pressure being heightened in the kidneys causes back pressure on the kidneys. The ultimate outcome is renal failure.

3. Consuming too much sodium intake

Basically, salt has lots of sodium and a large percentage of sodium consumption needs to be removed. However, it’s harder for kidneys to flush them out of the system, which strains the kidneys. If you consistently eat foods high in sodium, you’re putting too much pressure on your kidneys trying to eliminate them from your system. Unfortunately, statistics show that 90 percent of Americans’ sodium intake is beyond the normal

Consuming protein excessively

Protein is good, but too much of it isn’t. In fact, eating lots of foods that are rich in protein can impair the kidneys’ normal state. Typically, it is fine to eat protein-rich foods, but go easy on your protein consumption if you have sensitive kidneys. Extreme amount of protein also heightens the metabolic loads.

7. Disregarding flu and colds

Many people ignore flu and colds, when they shouldn’t. If you’re still working and going about your day like nothing’s wrong even when you’re sick, you’re putting too much pressure on your body, which can be detrimental for your kidneys. When you’re ill, make sure that you’re resting and taking the proper steps to completely recover. This is the only way you’re doing yourself a favor. Otherwise, you’ll make your illness even worse as you further complicate your medical state.

8. Drinking more than you should

Drinking too much alcohol can seriously impair your kidneys. This is because alcohol has many toxins that can compromise the kidneys’ main functions and overall stability. Drinking is fine as long as you make sure that you’re not overdoing it. If not, know that you’re putting your kidneys, among other organs in your body, to great