In adults, each kidney is about 10 cm long, 6 cm wide and 4 cm thick. They are the most vital organs of the body that help produce urine by eliminating waste and excess liquid from the body. The urine formed in each kidney pass through the ureters, from where it flows into the bladder and then lodges itself into the urethra and thus excreting it. Mostly, every individual is born with two kidneys while in some rare case an individual may only have a kidney at the time of the birth. However, one kidney performs its main function without much of the complications. The complexity arises when the one fortunate kidney cannot perform its main functions.
The main functions of a healthy kidney
The primary function of the kidney is to cleanse the blood and make urine. Both the kidneys are involved in removing waste and toxins out of the blood. The most important functions of the kidney are as follow:
Elimination of waste products
- Purification of the blood and elimination of waste products is the major role of the kidney.
- The protein we consume through our food produces waste products after digestion and the accumulation of these waste products is likely similar to the build up of poison.
- Creatinine and urea are two important measurements of blood tests. Their values indicate the functioning of the kidneys. When both the kidney fails, their value eventually increases in a blood test.
Removal of excess fluids
The second most important function our kidney performs is the regulation of fluid balance in the body by excreting excess as urine while retaining the necessary amount of water that is essential for living. With decreased kidney function, the job of eliminating the excess water gets disturbed leading to swelling in the body.
Blood pressure control
The kidneys are responsible for producing hormones which help regulate water and salt and maintenance of blood pressure in the body. These hormones include rennin, angiotensin, prostaglandin, etc. Any disturbance in their production can cause an imbalance in salt and water in an individual leading to high blood pressure.
Red blood cells production
For maintaining blood levels in the body, RBCs play an important role. Erythropoietin is another hormone our kidney produces inside them. During decreased kidney function, the production of erythropoietin gets decreased, resulting in low hemoglobin also called anemia. That is the reason why patients with kidney disease do not get their HB to improve iron and vitamin supplements.
Maintain healthy bones
Vitamin D is converted into its active form with the help of the kidney. Vitamin D helps bone and teeth to grow properly, keep them healthy, and allow the calcium absorption from food. The body may not grow properly leading to growth retardation.
Balance minerals and chemicals
- The kidneys play an important role in regulating minerals and chemicals like sodium, hydrogen, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, and bicarbonate composition of the body’s fluid balance.
- An increase in the potassium level can lead to irregular heartbeat among the patients while sodium imbalance can affect an individual’s mental state. The healthy bones and teeth may get affected by an increased level of calcium in the body.
In the absence of healthy kidneys, all these functions of the body get disturbed. Hence, it is necessary to keep optimum health of the kidneys with the help of a renal diet and ayurvedic medicines.
Signs of kidney disease
Any kidney disease in their initial stages does not show any signs of physical damage in the body even when the functions at the back end are not performed with their full efficiency. The signs that should be carefully looked for are:
- Changes in the frequency of urination
- Brown or red-colored urine
- Uneasiness when sleeping at night
- Pain in the abdomen or at the side of your body
- Swelling in the body
- Inflated eyes
- Nausea and vomiting
- Food intolerance
- Trouble taking breathing
If you need to know more about how kidneys and how they balance our bodily system, approach to Doctor Puneet Dhawan, an ayurvedic kidney specialist in Delhi!
No comments:
Post a Comment