Our kidneys are two bean-shaped organs located in the back muscles in the upper abdominal cavity one on each side of the spine. The kidneys are a very important organ that filters toxins and excess water from our bodies.
There are people who disregard the fact that we should take care of our kidney, and if we don’t take care of it now, sure will regret soon. Anyhow in this article, we will show you 8 common habits that may damage your kidneys, which you should take care of.
We very know that kidney is an important organ of our body. Despite being such an important part of our body many of us don’t take proper care of them, Hence millions of people die each year from kidney disease.
There are common habits that may damage your kidneys, and if you take care of these, kidney disease can be prevented to a good extent.
8 Common habits that may damage your kidneys
1. Insufficient Water Intake
If you are not drinking enough water on a daily basis, Then, you are putting your kidney at risk. As already said, the main function of our kidneys is to drain out metabolic waste from our system and balance the erythrocyte in our bodies.
When you don’t drink enough water to make this process running, the renal blood flow decreases. This results in the accumulation of toxins in the blood and body, eventually making the working of kidneys more difficult. And in worst cases can lead to kidney failure.
2. Keeping your bladder full for prolonged time
Many of us might have the habit of delaying urinating, which is a call of nature. Various complications may arise in the urinary tract when we leave our bladder filled with urine for an extended period of time.
Hypertrophy of the detrusor muscle is one such example of complication. Hydronephrosis (an increase of urine pressure in kidneys) is another example that is caused by chronic back pressure on the kidneys.
Both these disorders can ultimately result in renal failure and even make dialysis a necessity. Hence, Urinating at the right time is highly recommended to maintain kidney health.
3. High Salt Consumption
Our kidney performs the functioning of metabolizing the sodium we consume. The salt we eat is the major source of sodium and majority of these sodium intakes need to be excreted. This is done by our kidneys.
When we consume salt or salt-containing foods in excess, the kidneys will be busy excreting sodium. This can cause long-term stress on our kidneys.
4. Consume Excess Alcohol
We all know alcohol itself is an unhealthy drink. However, it doesn’t cause any serious health issues, if consumed at a moderate level. But we often ignore the proper quantity suitable to support good health.
We shouldn’t ignore the fact that excess alcohol intake is a kidney-damaging habit.
Alcohol contains toxins that put stress on our kidneys and can damage them. Alcohol consumption in high amounts causes uric acid to be deposited in renal tubules, which leads to tubular obstruction and increases the risk of kidney failure.
5. Diet High in Proteins
Usually, it is healthy to consume proteins, but don’t consume it in excess. Too much protein increases the metabolic loads and can damage the kidney condition in the long run.
Excess consumption of red meat or other protein-rich foods can further deteriorate the condition of damaged kidneys.
6. Excess consumption of caffeine
We often choose to drink beverages like coffee, soft drinks, and sodas. Check the labels, And you can find that many of these beverages contain caffeine.
Having too much caffeine-containing foods like chocolate, drinks, like coffee, soft drinks, and energy drinks can cause high blood pressure. This in turn will put a strain on your kidneys. Over time leading to kidney failure.
According to researchers, most healthy adults can consume about two to four cups of brewed coffee a day. This would help them to stay away from the harmful effects of caffeine.
7. Smoking
According to the study published in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, having two cigarettes daily is enough to double the number of endothelial cells present in your blood, which can lead to arterial damage.
In addition, the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology cites many different studies conducted since 2003, Surprisingly all those studies link smoking to decreased kidney function.
Smoking increases blood pressure and heart rate, reduces blood flow, and narrows the blood vessels in the kidneys. It can even accelerate the dysfunctioning of the kidney and worsen existing kidney diseases.
8. Intake of painkillers
When we experience pain, it is so easy to just swallow a painkiller. But, you should think twice next time you do it. All pharmaceutical drugs come with side effects. And many causes damage to the kidney.
Taking painkillers for low-grade pain is not good for your kidney. Medical Experts warn that taking pain pills on a regular basis will reduce blood, and deteriorates the functioning of kidneys.
Now that you have seen 8 most common daily habits that damage your kidneys, take good care of these habits and stay healthy. Please share these tips with your friends and family, So they can also benefit from the information.