If your doctor ever diagnoses you with chronic kidney disease, he/she will give you two options to choose from. The first option is to undergo dialysis for the rest of your life, while the other option is to undergo a kidney transplant. While you may prefer avoiding a major surgery, such as a transplant, dialysis is not the best solution for your condition.

Here are some reasons why you should consider kidney transplant surgery over dialysis if you are looking for better health for the long-term:

1. Increases your life expectancy: What you may not know is that people on dialysis treatment have a severely reduced life expectancy. For instance, if you are 30 years old when dialysis starts, the treatment will keep you alive at most for 15 more years. Therefore, you may not even survive until your fifties with dialysis treatment for your damaged kidneys.

However, if you transplant a healthy kidney your life expectancy increases by 30 to 40 years. Keep in mind that kidneys from living donors are better and will help you live longer.

2. Eliminates the need for undergoing dialysis: If you choose dialysis over transplant surgery, you will need to undergo the treatment on a daily basis. This is not only costly but also affects your quality of life. For instance, a patient on dialysis will need to make special arrangements if he/she wants to go on a vacation with family so that his treatment continues even during the trip.

With a kidney transplant surgery, once you recover from the operation, you can live a normal life, without the need for daily treatment.

3. Lower cost of treatment: While you may think kidney transplant surgery is the costlier option between it and dialysis, you would be wrong to assume so. In kidney transplantation surgery, you pay a hefty amount at the time of the operation. However, in the case of dialysis, you pay smaller sums over very long periods. When you add up these small sums over 10-15 years of dialysis, you will find that transplantation is the cheaper option.

If you are young and have a long life ahead of you, kidney transplantation should be the first and foremost choice of treatment for chronic kidney disease. You can undergo dialysis while you wait for a donor and then receive a healthy organ.

Why Kidney Transplant Should Be Preferred Over Dialysis?

Urinary incontinence or the involuntary urination is a common and distressing problem, which may have a large impact on quality of life. The most common types of urinary incontinence in women are stress urinary incontinence and urge urinary incontinence. Women with both problems have mixed urinary incontinence. Stress urinary incontinence is caused by loss of support of the urethra which is usually a consequence of damage to pelvic support structures as a result of childbirth. It is characterized by leaking of small amounts of urine with activities which increase abdominal pressure such as coughing, sneezing and lifting. 

Additionally, frequent exercise in high-impact activities can cause athletic incontinence to develop. Urge urinary incontinence is caused by uninhibited contractions of the detrusor muscle. It is characterized by leaking of large amounts of urine in association with insufficient warning to get to the bathroom in time.

How to diagnose urinary incontinence?

Stress test: The patient relaxes, then coughs vigorously as the doctor watches for loss of urine.
Urinalysis: Urine is tested for evidence of infection, urinary stones, or other contributing causes.
Blood tests: Blood is taken, sent to a laboratory, and examined for substances related to causes of incontinence.
Ultrasound: Sound waves are used to visualize the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra.
Cystoscopy: A thin tube with a tiny camera is inserted in the urethra and used to see the inside of the urethra and bladder.
Urodynamic: Various techniques measure pressure in the bladder and the flow of urine.
Ayurvedic Management of Urinary Incontinence: 
Ayurveda is a very effective natural treatment for Involuntary Urination. Medicines help to treat the root cause of disease. Ayurveda remedies are known to be perfectly safe and have been tried by thousands of patients all over the world bedwetting are perfectly safe. These natural remedies do not have any side effects at all

Urinary Incontinence and How It Can Be Treated with Natural Remedies?

Every organ is important for the human body to perform its functions normally. Kidneys too are vital and are responsible for removing the excess fluid and toxins from the body. If the kidney is not functioning properly, then the patient is advised to undergo dialysis treatment. In some cases, the patient is advised to undergo a transplant. However, in any case, the patient has to follow a healthy diet, for the treatment and the medicines to work positively.

Suitable diet during dialysis
Most of the patients are not aware of the diet prescribed for dialysis. Though it is always advised to consult a dietician before following any diet for the condition, it is also advisable to gain some knowledge about what the dietician might suggest, so that one is not clueless about the treatment. In a majority of the cases, food containing potassium, phosphorus, low-fat cholesterol, and sodium is included in the diet of these patients. However, these are prescribed in a limited amount and vary from patient to patient.

Sodium: The sodium level of the dialysis patients needs to be controlled; and this can be done by eating food items that have a low sodium content, not more than 2,000 mg. Hence, the quantity of snacks, pudding, and chips are to be reduced in the diet chart.
Potassium: The level of potassium also needs to be kept in check to avoid further deterioration of the kidney. Bread, certain vegetables, and grains contain a high amount of potassium. Moreover, various salt substitutes contain potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride. Large intake of these foods may affect the kidney permanently. Hence, these are majorly excluded from the diet. The patients are advised to include tomatoes and bananas in their diet, though not on a daily basis.
Phosphorus: The patient is advised to avoid foods with high phosphorus. This includes milk and dairy products and grains. However, while on dialysis, meat is important as it gives enough protein despite being high on phosphorus. But, an abundance of meat in the diet may affect adversely. Hence, this is advised, but kept in control.
Cholesterol: To keep cholesterol amount in check during dialysis, the patient needs to cut down on fruits and vegetables and specific fat diets, while eating a sufficient amount of fish.
Protein: High protein food is necessary for a patient with a kidney disease. Meat is an excellent source of protein. Along with that, poultry, fish, and eggs are important, as well. Hence, all this is included in the diet.
Fluids: Dialysis helps in removing the excessive waste fluids from the kidney. But, to keep the body hydrated, the patient is allowed liquid intake, but only up to a certain limit.
It is necessary to maintain a proper diet during dialysis, as it quickens the treatment as well as helps the patient recover quickly.

Undergoing Dialysis - What Should Be Your Diet?

Kidney stones are caused when certain minerals of your urine are retained and are not fully released, causing them to amalgamate and form a stone. Passing a kidney stone is one of the most painful experiences you may face physically. Its magnanimity is often compared to childbirth, and those who are suffering from kidney stones dread having this experience. If you are not yet affected by kidney stones and do not want to, read further to know what type of diet you need to follow in order to prevent it.

1. Drink lots of water: On an average, a person must be drinking at least 3 liters of water every day. If you live in a more hot and humid climate, your water intake must be even more than that, so that on an average, 2.5 liters of urine is passed throughout the day, which decreases the chance of unnecessary retention of minerals from the urine and release them more easily from the body.

2. Continue eating foods rich in calcium: It is a common misconception that calcium accelerates the formation of kidney stones. Calcium is digested by the intestine, only excess calcium cannot be digested by the intestine and is sent to the kidney. Continue consuming calcium rich foods unless your doctor prescribes you against it. Make sure your diet includes enough dairy products such as milk, cheeses, etc., or other calcium rich foods, such as oats and broccoli.

3. Limit intake of oxalic acid: Oxalic acid is mostly found in foods obtained from plants. It restricts the absorption of calcium in the intestines and as a result, more calcium is passed into the kidneys; thus, forming calcium oxalate, or oxalate stones. Try to avoid foods, such as rhubarb, Swiss chard, nuts, tea, sweet potatoes, etc.;mainly leguminous plant products.

4. Decrease the ingestion of sodium salts, sugar and meat protein: Salts and sugars, mainly found in packaged foods are used to prevent them from expiring. They increase the release of calcium and oxalates into the blood, which thus increases the chance to develop kidney stones. Meat contains fibers which affect certain nutrients in the kidney, thus aggravating the formation of stones.

5. Increase the consumption of insoluble fibers: Insoluble fibers are those rough fibers which are not soluble in water during the process of digestion. They are found in rice, wheat, barley, etc., and are found to decrease calcium absorption in the kidney. They attach themselves to the calcium and oxalates, which enable them to be released as stool instead of urine.

Kidney Stones and Your Diet

What should you do if you have an overactive bladder?

Overactive bladder, also known as OAB, is a condition where sudden involuntary contractions of the urinary bladder's muscular walls cause bladder storage dysfunction. It leads to sudden and frequent urges to urinate (urinary urgency), as well as unintentional leakage or urine (urinary incontinence).

This is a condition that affects both men and women and causes tremendous discomfort in nearly every aspect of daily life. The specific causes of OAB vary from case to case but it is generally attributed to infection of the urinary tract or dysfunction of the nervous system. The symptoms are intensified by unhealthy lifestyle choices such as overindulging in caffeinated drinks, spicy foods, and alcohol.

There are several ways in which you can deal with the problem of OAB, depending on the nature of the case. It is necessary for you to consult a urologist for a detailed diagnosis to formulate the best treatment option.

Following are the most effective remedies to treat an overactive bladder:

1. Lifestyle Modifications

Also known as behavioral therapy, this is the first step in the treatment of OAB. It involves inculcating simple changes into everyday habits such as avoiding food and drinks that irritate the bladder, scheduling (and in some cases, practice delaying) bathroom visits, exercising the pelvic floor and bladder muscles, keeping a record of urinating habits in a 'bladder diary' for better understanding the problem, etc. You can incorporate these habits into everyday activities for an easy alleviation of the problem with absolutely no side effects.

2. Medication and Surgery

There are several different kinds of medicines and drugs that can treat the problem of OAB. The most common types are muscle relaxants that loosen the muscles of the urinary bladder to prevent involuntary contractions, and antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs that treat urinary tract infections. Many types of implants are surgically set into the pelvic area to act as electrical nerve stimulators for neuromodulation therapy. Reconstructive bladder surgery is another remedial option.

3. Devices and Products

Urinary urgency and incontinence can be managed through the external use of various devices and products which collect and hold urine or absorb leakages. These include indwelling catheters, condom catheters (for men), urine drainage bags, absorbent pads and adult diapers, and toilet substitutes such as bedpans and bedside urinals.



What Should You Do if You Have an Overactive Bladder?

Nephrotic syndrome is a type of kidney disorder wherein, the body passes out excess amount of proteins through urine, owing to the damage caused to the tiny clusters of blood vessels in the kidneys. The symptoms include putting on excessive weight as a result of fluid retention, foamy urine and severe swelling around the region of the feet, ankles and eyes.

Common causes behind it

Minimal change disease (also known as nil disease) leads to the abnormal functioning of the kidneys
Excess deposit of amyloid proteins in the organs, thus taking a toll on the filter mechanism of the kidneys.
Diabetes affecting the glomeruli (capillaries present in the nephrons of the kidneys).
Systemic lupus  erythematous causing chronic swelling of your kidney.
Membranous nephropathy wherein the membranes in your glomeruli thicken.
Infections such as malaria, hepatitis C, hepatitis B and HIV.
Medications to combat infections and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
Treatment Available

Kidney Biopsy is an essential part of disease assessment.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors bring down blood pressure levels as well as the amount of protein discharged from the urine.
Water pills help control sweating, thus, increasing the fluid flushed from the kidneys.
Statins reduce cholesterol level.
Blood thinners such as anticoagulants lower the risk of blood clots.
Corticosteroids regulate the immune system and ease the inflammation that results from kidney disorders.
Incorporating certain lifestyle changes such as opting for lean proteins, cutting on the intake of fat in the diet and consuming lesser amounts of salt can treat inflammation and swelling.

Nephrotic Syndrome - 9 Surprising Causes Behind it

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