Kidney protection and familiarity with kidney diseases

How to protect the kidneys? What are the most important kidney diseases and how are they diagnosed? What are the risk factors? .... Read the answers to these questions in the continuation of this article.

One in 20 French people has diseased kidneys and they do not know it!
Nearly three million French people suffer from kidney disease. However, most of them are not aware of this! In fact, kidney disease does not cause any symptoms until it is advanced. Most of these diseases are diagnosed late. Early detection, however, can reduce or even stop the severity of injuries.

Kidneys: Body filters
The kidneys remove toxic wastes that result from the destruction of the body's cells and the digestion of food. "The cells of our body need energy and various other substances to survive, which are met by food," says Brigitte Lanz, a nephrologist and secretary general of the Kidney Foundation.
The waste produced by these steps is often absorbed by the blood and purified by the kidneys. "Then these toxins enter the urine." In addition, in cases of kidney disease, the body is poisoned by its own waste ...

Kidney: Hormone factory
But the role of the kidneys is not limited to purifying the blood. In fact, the kidneys also produce hormones. "The first is renin, which regulates blood pressure," adds Brigitte Lance. "That's why chronic kidney failure is often associated with high blood pressure!"
The kidneys also make the famous erythropoietin, which is known for doping. This hormone affects the production of bone marrow in the production of red blood cells. Deficiency of this hormone causes anemia due to kidney failure.
Eventually, the kidneys produce calcitriol, which helps the gut absorb calcium. Calcitriol is also produced less after the onset of kidney disease. In case of calcium deficiency, the body removes the calcium it needs from the bones, which causes the skeleton of the body to become fragile.

Kidney disease: Multiple causes
Kidney disease can be caused by a bacterial infection such as streptococcus.
Absorption of toxins, especially some drugs, can also lead to poor kidney function.
Finally, the kidneys function less with age ... In fact, from the age of 60 onwards, for every 10 years, kidney function decreases by 10%.

Obstruction of the renal arteries
One of the main causes of renal failure is obstruction of the renal arteries. "From the age of 50, the walls of the renal arteries may thicken, leading to cholesterol deposition," says Brigitte Lanz. This is the same as venous inflammation! Blood flow to the kidneys is reduced. "So the kidney tissue is slowly deteriorating."
Often, early detection of this obstruction can be treated with angioplasty. "A small balloon enters the constricted area of ​​the artery and inflates it in thirty seconds," explains BJT Lance. This eliminates the swelling and allows blood to flow back into the artery normally. "This treatment can slightly improve kidney failure."

Diabetes and kidney failure
Diabetes is also responsible for a quarter of all cases of kidney failure, and this ratio is constantly increasing. "Diabetes is often associated with high blood pressure and, of course, high blood fats," warns Brigitte Lanz. "Both of these factors lead to kidney damage." Time is of the essence again! The earlier diabetes is diagnosed and treated, the slower kidney loss will be.

Kidneys: Warning Signs
At the onset of kidney disease, there are often no specific symptoms. "Kidney failure is gradually felt with excessive fatigue from a task, loss of appetite and the need to urinate frequently at night," adds Brigitte Lanz. Kidney dysfunction is generally detected in cases of high blood pressure, or after a urine test. As the degree and severity of kidney failure progresses, doctors are counting on blood tests. The main factor is creatinine, which means that the amount of creatinine in the blood is measured.
"Creatine is produced from the natural destruction of muscle cells in the body," Lanz explains. "If the kidneys are not working properly, the level of creatinine in the blood will increase."

Stop the deterioration of the situation
As soon as kidney failure is diagnosed, treatment should be started to prevent the condition from getting worse. "For this, blood pressure must first be controlled by medication," says Brigitte Lanz. The patient should then reconsider his or her diet. "In fact, a high-protein diet increases kidney function and impairs kidney function." It is also necessary to stop smoking. In fact, tobacco toxins accelerate the progression of kidney failure.
When the kidneys are no longer working!
Dialysis treatment should be started as soon as renal failure becomes severe. Dialysis purifies the blood through a semipermeable membrane. In France, about 8,000 people start the treatment each year, and more than 35,000 people receive regular dialysis.
Patients have a choice between hemodialysis and portionil dialysis. In hemodialysis, blood is removed from a vein in the arm and directed to the person on dialysis. The blood is then filtered and injected into a vein. Instead, in cases of portionil hemodialysis, two liters of a solution is injected into the abdomen. This is a peritoneal solution, which covers the membranes of the abdominal organs. This substance plays the role of a purifier.
Kidney transplant
Heavy dialysis treatment is difficult for many patients and makes life exhausting for them. Therefore, kidney transplantation is a method of treatment. "I have been on dialysis for 12 years, three times a week for four hours at a time, due to kidney failure caused by a genetic disease," says Sabrina, a 33-year-old university professor.
Dialysis is a real physical problem, which leads to severe fatigue and gradual damage to the rest of the body. At 17, I had the chance to get a kidney transplant. "It was like a rebirth." A kidney transplant is done between a kidney recipient and a brain-dead donor, or a living donor (twins, parents ...). A kidney transplant relieves the patient of dialysis, but this does not mean the end of treatment.
How to protect the kidneys?
Some very simple principles will help keep your kidneys healthy. Brigitte Lanz has some advice: "You should drink enough water (at least one liter per day) according to your needs and divide this amount into several steps to make the kidneys work easier. Be careful to have a balanced diet to prevent weight gain and high cholesterol.
"Do not use too much salt because too much salt can cause high blood pressure." Avoid any self-medication. In fact, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including aspirin, can poison the kidneys. The same is true of painkillers such as paracetamol, if taken in large amounts over a long period of time. "Be careful not to overdose on laxatives or diuretics and eat products whose ingredients are not known to you, such as some Chinese herbs," says Lanz. "In the end, pay attention to high-protein diets, these foods make the kidneys tired!"
Kidneys are expensive, because of them we have proper nutrition ...
Diagnosis
Since the onset of kidney disease is asymptomatic, you should consider diagnosing the disease to prevent it from getting worse. People at risk must talk to a doctor! People at risk include people over the age of 50, people with high blood pressure, very obese people, people with diabetes, smokers and people with a family history of urinary tract or kidney disease.