Six habits to adopt for healthy kidneys

Your kidneys largely affect quality of life, because they are responsible for a hormone — called erythropoietin — which tells the body to make oxygen-carrying red blood cells.

Your kidneys work hard daily, filtering and remove waste products from around 120–150 quarts of blood.

They also control blood pressure, keep your bones healthy, and regulate the level of electrolytes in your blood.

When there are fewer red blood cells to carry oxygen, your muscles and brain tire very quickly

Here are six habits to keep your kidneys healthy.

Stay hydrated

Water dilutes the concentration of waste material in urine and helps your kidneys work properly.

So drinking a large amount of water every day is putting yourself on the right path to good kidney health.

The colour of your urine can work as an indicator of dehydration – if your urine is dark, you may not be getting enough water.

Reduce sodium intake 

Excess sodium can increase your blood pressure, which hampers blood flow to your kidneys and eventually damages them.

In fact, high blood pressure is the second highest cause of kidney damage.

Cut down on protein

High protein diets are common but did you know that excess protein can harm your kidneys?

Ammonia, a byproduct of protein metabolism that can be dangerous in high amounts, is converted to urea and excreted as urine by your kidneys.

If you consume excess protein, your kidneys need to work harder.

Drink less alcohol 

Excess alcohol can harm your kidneys because it is a toxin which needs to be filtered out from the blood.

Alcohol also dehydrates you, affecting the normal functioning of kidneys. Excessive drinking can also increase your risk for high blood pressure and liver disease, both of which negatively impact your kidneys.

Drink in moderation to keep your kidneys healthy.

Quit smoking

We’re already aware that smoking can harm your heart and lungs and cause cancer. Kidneys are no exception.

Smoking can raise your blood pressure and slow down blood flow to your kidneys.

Exercise regularly

Keeping fit helps to reduce your blood pressure and therefore reduces the risk of chronic kidney disease.