10 Bad Habits That Damage Your Kidneys

You must know bad habits that damage your kidneys to avoid them: don't drink enough water, painkiller abuse, overeat meat, sleep less, etc.

High blood pressure and diabetes are the most common causes lead to kidney disease; however, there are other reasons. One of the factors causing kidney failure is your daily habits. Let’s read this article with WhichChoose to know awful habits that damage your kidneys!

1

Statistics About Kidney Disease

Statistics About Kidney Disease

Each year, many people die of kidney disease worldwide, and the number of people suffering from chronic renal failure and needing dialysis or kidney transplantation to stay alive keeps increasing.

Statistics show that, worldwide, more than millions of people are waiting for kidney transplants, but only a few thousand will receive transplants because of a shortage of suitable organ donors. Moreover, patients usually feel surprised when they are diagnosed with kidney failure.

Experts have found unhealthy habits can cause kidney diseases.

2

10 Awful Habits That Damage Your Kidneys

Bad Habits That Damage Your Kidneys

2.1. Don’t empty your bladder early

Maintaining a full bladder for a long time leads to bladder damage. Moreover, the urine in the bladder for a long time can cause the bacteria growing in urine to multiply quickly. When the urine refluxes back to the ureter and kidneys, the bacteria can result in kidney infections, urinary tract infections, nephritis, and even Uremia.

So, no matter how busy you are, you must drink lots of water and urinate frequently. If you form the habit of holding back urine, it will eventually damage your kidneys.

2.2. Drink less water

The primary functions of the kidneys are to manage erythrocyte balances and remove metabolic wastes in urine. If we do not drink enough water, the blood will be concentrated, and the blood flow to the kidney will not be enough, eliminating toxins will be impaired.

2.3. Take too much salt

The kidneys metabolize 95% sodium we consume through food. Consuming much salt will make the kidneys work harder to excrete the excess salt and lead to decreased kidney function. Excess sodium will cause water retention, causing edema. Edema usually elevates blood pressure and increases the risk of developing kidney disease. Therefore, you should consume 6g of sodium per day to prevent from kidneys.

2.4. Don’t treat common infections properly

Common infections, including pharyngitis, tonsillitis, and cold, usually cause kidney damage. So, you will see that people who get kidney disease for the first time or whose illness condition worsens usually go to the hospital with a history of cold or sore throat.

After common infections, you suffer from symptoms like blood in urine, swelling, headache, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and poor appetite appear; you should consult your doctor immediately to assess your kidney functions and start treatment if compromised.

2.5. Overeat meat

Eating too much meat and protein can increase the metabolic load of the kidney. For those suffering from proteinuria, consuming too much meat can aggravate protein leakage, worsening pathological renal lesions.

It is suggested that protein intake should be 0.8g/kg daily. This means a person with 50kg should consume 40g of protein daily. Consuming meat daily should be limited to 300g.

2.6. Don’t eat enough

This is equally as dangerous as overeating; both of them will damage your digestive organs, which are full of mucosal tissues. Mucosal tissues relate closely to your immune system. This is why many kidney failure patients are diagnosed with “autoimmune kidney damage.”

2.7. Painkiller abuse

Using analgesics for a prolonged duration may reduce blood flow and significantly affect kidney function. Moreover, patients with analgesic-induced renal failure are more likely to suffer from bladder cancer. Therefore, use analgesics only when necessary, and learn to rest instead of taking tablets. If you have been on painkillers for a long time, it’s about time you had a test to assess your renal function.

2.8. Don’t use medicine for hypertension and diabetes

Diabetes and hypertension have been shown to precipitate or speed up kidney damage; therefore, if you are diagnosed with any of these diseases, you must use your medicines. This will help control your condition while preserving your kidneys.

2.9. Drink too many alcoholic beverages

Drinking alcohol without limitation may lead to the deposition of uric acid in renal tubules, triggering tubular obstruction and increasing the risk of kidney diseases.

2.10. Don’t sleep enough

Stress is one of the reasons causing hypertension. A common symptom of stress is insomnia. Because of insomnia, blood pressure may increase by an average of 2-5mg/Hg. Chronically elevated blood pressure can lead to damage to kidney capillaries, giving rise to kidney problems. Thus, we need to balance work and rest to protect our kidneys and live a healthy life.

WhichChoose shares bad habits that damage your kidneys. At the early stage of kidney disease, there are usually no special symptoms, so many patients are not diagnosed until the illness condition or the acute attack develops into the late stage. Therefore, you should do kidney function tests regularly to assess your kidneys’ health. We wish you a healthy and happy life!

WhichChoose
Logo
Enable registration in settings - general