You may have heard that a dog is man’s best friend. This is wrong. The truth is that your kidneys are your best friends and they always will be. Your kidneys perform loads of life supporting functions such as removing toxins from your blood, neutralizing harmful acids, absorbing unwanted minerals, producing urine, and manufacturing important hormones.
So many people fail to appreciate their kidneys until something goes wrong that we thought it was high time to help you show some appreciation for these little workhorses of the body with ten things you’re doing that hurt your kidneys.
Failing to drink enough water
This is a no-brainer, and it holds true for all of your body’s organs- not just your kidneys- water is a non-negotiable necessity. The kidneys deal with waste fluids directly. That means not drinking enough water hinders their ability to filter urine. That results in the toxification of the kidneys.
Eating too much salt
Having a diet with too much salt is no good- especially if you’re not drinking enough water. There are healthy salts, of course. Eating more sea salt helps, but it still increases your need for water intake. Your best bet is to cut out the table salt, eat a moderate amount of good natural sea salt, and stay hydrated with filtered water.
Waiting to pee
Delaying the call of nature does not make you tough. It makes you someone who might need a kidney transplant. Waiting to pee can be tempting, especially if you’re busy or just don’t want to get out of bed. But doing so can elevate the toxicity from waste products, leading to kidney and bladder infection. It can also cause impotence in men. So, you know what you have to do, fellas. Shoot for porcelain.
Eating sugar
The science is in and has been for a few years now. Sugar is poison, especially refined sugars that you find in candy, sweets, and bread. It’s a crystal, like salt. But it is corrosive to cells both inside and out. Worse yet, it tends to build up around our mitochondria, making us unable to use other things as fuel. In the kidneys, it forms a corrosive gunk that attracts the fungus, Candida. It’s a recipe for disaster.
Too few vitamins and minerals
As one of the body’s hardest working organs with at least the second dirtiest job in biology your kidneys need a lot of repair work. Your body knows this and does what it can to give your kidneys the support they need to heal and replenish themselves. Like the liver, they have a remarkable ability to heal, but they need to be fed properly with plenty of good vitamins and minerals. If your diet is poor, your kidneys will be among the first to let you know.
Excessive animal protein
We know that we need animal protein to properly rebuild vital structures in the body. However, if you don’t strike the right balance, you’ll be over-taxing your kidneys. Red meat is the hardest type for your kidneys to process and should be limited.
Too little sleep
Missing sleep literally causes and exacerbates all kinds of health problems. Deep sleep is when the body is able to let busy organs rest, and also when it rebuilds every structure in our bodies. The more sleep you miss, the less your body can heal from normal wear and tear. Your kidneys, once again, will be one of the first areas to act up due to a lack of sleep.
Too much coffee
We all know coffee is hard on the kidneys. As a fairly powerful diuretic, coffee makes the kidneys work overtime. Coffee also dehydrates us. That means while the kidneys are working harder- they are also processing more viscous fluid. That’s a lot of extra strain of an organ that’s already under a great deal of pressure.
Painkillers
Over the counter painkillers are a major culprit behind so many cases of kidney failure and kidney disease. They are especially hard on your liver, which as a similar function to the kidneys. These are two organs that you do not want to abuse.
Alcohol
We tend to think of liver damage when we think of alcohol abuse. But the kidneys are also one of alcoholism’s first casualties. If you do drink regularly, consider a month of abstinence each year. And if you believe you have a problem cutting back, seek help before it’s too late.
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