Five Things Kidneys Do
October 1st, 2009 | by admin |
Yulia Berry asked:
Kidneys are not there just to help you process your urine. The kidneys are a vital part of your body, so important, that whoever designed us saw fit to give us a spare. Here are five important functions that your kidney performs for you.
1: Your kidneys help detoxify your body:
The kidney helps to break down various toxin and send them out via the urine. These toxins come from the food you eat, medications that you might take, metabolites (Broken down by-products), or from the exertion of your other organs or muscle groups.
2: Kidneys help stabilize your blood pressure:
Kidneys help regulate blood pressure in two ways: First by causing the arteries to constrict and secondly by helping increase the circulating blood volume. Having early onset hypertension (before the age of 30) may actually be indicative of kidney disease. While this might also be the result of thyroid problems and excessive weight, the functioning of kidneys also play an important part of this problem. The same goes for late onset hypertension for those over 50 years of age.
3: Kidneys make Vitamin D usable:
The Kidneys are responsible for turning the 25-Vitamin D that your liver makes into 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (Calciferol) which is the usable form of vitamin D that your body needs. If your kidneys become diseased, then you could wind up becoming Vitamin D deficient. In fact, most patients on dialysis are prescribed large doses of Vitamin D on a daily or weekly basis.
4: The kidneys help with blood production:
The kidneys make a hormone known as erythropoietin which is then sent to the bone marrow in order to rev up the production of blood (as long as there are adequate amounts of iron, Vitamin B12, and folate available).
5: Kidneys help maintain your body’s proper balance of water:
The kidneys are responsible for helping preventing dehydration and heart failure by regulating and getting rid of the excess amounts of water and salt your body has. Substances like caffeine and alcohol impairs your kidneys ability to hand onto water. Alcohol can also cause your kidneys to waste calcium, phosphorous and magnesium.
Paint Stick
Kidneys are not there just to help you process your urine. The kidneys are a vital part of your body, so important, that whoever designed us saw fit to give us a spare. Here are five important functions that your kidney performs for you.
1: Your kidneys help detoxify your body:
The kidney helps to break down various toxin and send them out via the urine. These toxins come from the food you eat, medications that you might take, metabolites (Broken down by-products), or from the exertion of your other organs or muscle groups.
2: Kidneys help stabilize your blood pressure:
Kidneys help regulate blood pressure in two ways: First by causing the arteries to constrict and secondly by helping increase the circulating blood volume. Having early onset hypertension (before the age of 30) may actually be indicative of kidney disease. While this might also be the result of thyroid problems and excessive weight, the functioning of kidneys also play an important part of this problem. The same goes for late onset hypertension for those over 50 years of age.
3: Kidneys make Vitamin D usable:
The Kidneys are responsible for turning the 25-Vitamin D that your liver makes into 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (Calciferol) which is the usable form of vitamin D that your body needs. If your kidneys become diseased, then you could wind up becoming Vitamin D deficient. In fact, most patients on dialysis are prescribed large doses of Vitamin D on a daily or weekly basis.
4: The kidneys help with blood production:
The kidneys make a hormone known as erythropoietin which is then sent to the bone marrow in order to rev up the production of blood (as long as there are adequate amounts of iron, Vitamin B12, and folate available).
5: Kidneys help maintain your body’s proper balance of water:
The kidneys are responsible for helping preventing dehydration and heart failure by regulating and getting rid of the excess amounts of water and salt your body has. Substances like caffeine and alcohol impairs your kidneys ability to hand onto water. Alcohol can also cause your kidneys to waste calcium, phosphorous and magnesium.
Paint Stick
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