World Kidney Day – 5 tips to take care of your kidneys

WORLD Kidney Day is on March 11, and the whole month is dedicated to raising awareness of keeping the kidneys healthy.

The theme for 2021 is “Kidney Health for Everyone Everywhere: Living Well with Kidney Disease” and it is about educating patients and their helpers about caring and managing treatment effectively, improving health-related quality of life and ensuring that patients still participate fully in “meaningful life activities”. 

With kidney patients being in the high-risk group during the current global pandemic, the campaign hopes to empower participants with knowledge on how to avoid being completely overwhelmed by treatment management and to inspire their hope and confidence to live well. 

Why the kidney is so important? 

The kidneys may be the size of your fists, but their function is huge as they filter and expel waste from every part of the body. They also produce hormones that keep your body functioning properly, such as the hormone that regulates blood pressure and controls the production of red blood cells, says Healthline.

If your kidneys fail, wastes and toxins have to be filtered out through dialysis or you’ll need a kidney transplant. Rather do the best you can to implement a preventative lifestyle, especially if you fall in the high-risk category for kidney damage. 

This category includes people who are over 60 years old, obese and were born at low birth weight, have cardiovascular disease or it could run in the family, and also those who suffer from high blood pressure or if the family has a history of it. These people should have regular kidney screens, especially if they think they already have kidney damage.  

On the road to healthy kidney function

Before you start a new health regimen, see a doctor for a check-up. The doctor’s findings will kick start the necessary changes you need to make. After that clear your medicine chest of all over-the-counter medication that you’ve been taking for random pains. 

If you smoke, lose that habit as well and tough out the withdrawal systems with no pill-popping and no puffing. In the long run, every part of your body, especially your kidneys, will thank you. Now that you’ve ditched the chemical toxins and depending on your medical check-up, this may need to include alcoholic beverages, you may proceed to better health. 

Living clean with the big five

Living clean and healthy means implementing these inter-related healthy practices:

• Stay hydrated: Drink at least eight glasses – 1.5 to 2 litres of water a day to flush sodium and toxins from your kidneys. You may need to add more fluid depending on factors like your current health status, gender, climate and whether you exercise or not. 
• Eat healthily: Being overweight leads to all kind of health issues such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, and these, in turn, damage the kidneys. To contain all potential risks, it is better to lose the processed, salty, fatty and sugary foods and switch to eating fresh ingredients flavoured with herbs and spices. A good tip is to shop for foods from the colder parts of the supermarket, such as the fresh produce sections. On top of your list should be naturally low-sodium foods like cauliflower, blueberries, whole grains and beans.
• Get fit: In order for the kidneys to filter and lose the waste, it is necessary for you to lose the waist. This, in turn, will help reduce your blood pressure and will improve your heart health, all factors that endanger the kidneys. 
• Manage your blood sugar: The more fat and processed sugar you eat, the more insulin the body will produce that your cells can’t use fast enough. The excess glucose/sugar then ends up in your bloodstream, so that the kidneys over-exert themselves trying to filter the sugars from your blood. Enter life-threatening damage. In order to manage your blood sugar, lose the fat, sugar and salt in your diet. 

Things don’t have to implode

There’s no need to be gloomy about the prospect of kidney disease if you consciously make the effort to keep moving and living a healthy life. 

 Before making any huge dietary, exercise or health-related decisions, the best thing to do is to speak to a medical professional. This can become costly, but that is why Affinity Health is there to make healthcare and advice accessible and affordable. 

Affinity Health can provide you with either a day-to-day plan, a hospital plan, or a  combination of both for total peace of mind. You can also benefit from booster options.

Affinity Health has created a range of healthcare products that are designed to protect you and your family when it matters most.

Contact Affinity Health today, and our agent will get in touch with you and take you through all the options available so that you can find easy, affordable cover that is handcrafted for you and your loved ones.