How to Avoid Damaging Your Kidneys

07 February 2010

Kidneys perform many critical functions that affect the rest of your body. They remove toxins and waste from your blood and regulate how much water your body retains. Kidneys help to regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in your body, which is needed to build and maintain strong bones. They even make hormones like renin to help regulate blood pressure. A healthy kidney also makes a hormone, called erythropoietin, which helps to make red blood cells.Unless you have inherited genes that will give you kidney disease, there are several steps you can take to prevent kidney disease or kidney failure. Even if you have genetic risk factors or already have early stages of kidney disease, you can delay disease by taking these steps.
Things You'll Need:
exercise strategy
weight loss strategy
diet plan

Step 1 If you have high blood pressure, reduce it. Kidneys have tiny blood vessels or capillaries that work as filters. High blood pressure will damage these capillaries.

Step 2 Control your blood sugar. High levels of blood sugar or glucose are a major risk factor for kidney disease. If you are a pre-diabetic or have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, you need to control your blood sugar. High glucose will damage the capillaries of your kidneys.

Step 3 Eat a healthy diet. Reduce salt intake. Eat more vegetables and fruits. Reduce your protein intake, especially animal-derived protein. Protein stresses your kidneys.

Step 4 Lose weight. Losing weight will reduce your blood pressure. It will also reduce your chances of developing type 2 diabetes.

Step 5 Exercise. Exercise may help you lose weight and will reduce your blood pressure.

Step 6 Avoid taking large amounts of pain killers. Acetaminophen, found in Tylenol and other drugs, will damage your kidneys when taken in large quantities. Combination drugs containing caffeine, acetaminophen, and aspirin can harm the kidney even faster, while non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen hurt the kidney only if the kidneys are stressed already according to the National Kidney Foundation.

Step 7 If steps 1 to 6 don't work for you sufficiently, you may have to take blood pressure medications. ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) inhibitors protect kidneys and are recommended for type 1 diabetics. ARBs (angiotensin receptor blockers) are blood pressure medications widely used for type 2 diabetics.