Kidney is the most vital organ in the body as it eliminates the waste material from our blood. When kidneys fails to carry out its work effectively the waste materials gets accumulated in the blood and end up with many serious disease condition that affects the other vital structures in our body. The function of the kidney is carried out artificially by an external device called dialyser to purify the blood and remove the waste products from it. This procedure is called as dialysis. There are two types of dialysis they are haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. In Haemodialysis, the waste products are removed from the blood and there by the fluid and electrolyte balance is maintained.

Things a person should follow if they are undergoing haemodialysis

Love your heart: Patients undergoing dialysis are at more risk of getting cardiac problems. So it is best advised to follow few of the following measures to take care of their heart
Keep your blood pressure and cholesterol levels under control
Quit smoking
Reduce stress
Have healthy low fat and heart friendly diet
Get regular physical activity but avoid excessive strainers activity that may require extra effort from your heart
Maintain a healthy weight
Diet: Dialysis not only removes the waste matters from your blood but sometimes also the essential electrolytes and nutrients. Protein, potassium sodium and phosphorus are the major things that are to be noted.
Encourage the patient to take high quality protein rich foods like meat, fish, milk, egg and chicken which is essential to improve your muscle strength and immunity.
Have a check of your sodium level and take sodium rich foods accordingly, as excess sodium may increase the fluid intake.
Limit your fluid intake: Use ice cubes instead of water or use small cups of water. Make sure you measure every sip of water you take.
Don't Overeat: Slow down while eating and stop eating when you feel full. don t over load your stomach

Haemodialysis - 4 Things a Person Must Follow if Your Undergoing it

The prostate is a vital organ that located between the penis and the bladder. The prostate is involved in the release of the prostate fluid that keeps the sperm properly nourished. Prostate cancer, as the term indicates, is characterized by the abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cancerous cells in the prostate. Though the incidences of prostate cancer are low in India, necessary precautions and diagnostic steps should be carried out to prevent the condition from jeopardizing our lives.

Prostate screening includes two tests known as the Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) and Prostate-Specific Antigen test (PSA). PSA combined with DRE helps to identify prostate cancer at a very early stage. If any of the tests show an abnormality, a doctor might prescribe an ultrasound such as MRI Fusion or Prostate Biopsy to confirm the diagnosis.

Immediate treatment may not be necessary
For low-risk prostate cancer, doctors often recommend active surveillance that includes periodic blood tests, rectal exam, and biopsies.
Active surveillance helps a doctor to continuously track the growth of cancer cells and the possibility of their spread to other areas of the body.
Surveillance is fit for those who are already suffering from a serious condition or for those patients who are above the age of 60.
A surgical procedure to remove prostate cancer
Surgery is considered when the cancer has metastasized to surrounding tissue and the lymph nodes. There are two kinds of surgeries that a patient can go through- a Robot-Assisted surgery and a Retropubic surgery.
Radical Prostatectomy might have risks involved. It is, therefore, wise to discuss the pros and cons of the surgery with the doctor well in advance.
Understanding the treatment options

Radiation therapy: Radiation therapy involves the use of high-powered and high-frequency energy beams to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy is often used to shrink the size of the cancer cells. There could be two types of radiation therapy-Brachytherapy and External beam radiation. Radiation therapy too can have its side effects. Doctors prescribe several medicines during therapy.
Hormone therapy: Hormone therapy helps to stop the production of a male hormone known as testosterone. This treatment option includes medication that completely stops the production of testosterone, the medications may also block the flow of testosterone on the cancer cells, and surgery to remove the testicles. Hormone therapy is used in advanced cancer stages.
Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is a drug that goes into the body and kills rapidly growing and metastasizing cancer cells. It is administered through IV (intravenous), or orally as pill or both. This treatment option is employed when cancer spreads to a remote body location and does not respond to hormone therapy.
Biological therapy: Biological therapy involves the usage of the body s immune system to fight cancer. A type of biological therapy known as the sipuleucel-t is used to treat patients with advanced cancer stage and recurring cancer as well.

Prostate Cancer - How Biological Therapy Will Help?

Kidneys work aggressively day and night - this pair is responsible for all the cleaning - Waste Removal from your body.

Check out how you can keep your pair of kidneys functional right until you need them:

1) Increase Fluid Intake: No.1 reason for kidney stones/problems is not drinking enough water. When your fluid intake is low, it puts extra work load on the kidneys to pass toxins. Similarly excessive alcohol intake leads to dehydration and puts pressure on your kidneys making them age earlier.

2) Cut Back On Salt: Salt is anti-kidneys. If you have any chronic problem, try to aim for less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium each day.

3) Empty Your Bladder: Do not keep urine stored in bladder for too long. It majorly affects the functioning of kidneys.

4) Check On Chronic Problems: Manage your diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease well. These have direct impact on Kidneys, esp. Your cholesterol levels, sugar levels and blood pressure. Having high cholesterol, especially if you have diabetes, puts you more at risk for kidney disease, heart disease and stroke.

5) Balance your Physical Health: Keep your body active to keep organs such as kidneys in good functioning. Do at least 15 min of cardio exercises daily. Also, get sufficient rest for your body.

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5 Ways to Keep Your Kidneys Active

Diabetes is a lifestyle disease that is very prevalent in the current generation. According to a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the number of people with diabetes has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. The global prevalence of diabetes among adults over 18 years of age has risen from 4.7% to 8.5% from 1980 to 2014. Diabetes should not be taken lightly as it can affect other body organs besides the pancreas, such as the kidneys. Diabetic nephropathy refers to damage to your kidneys caused by diabetes, and may also lead to kidney failure in various cases.

Causes of diabetic nephropathy
Not everyone who suffers from diabetes will suffer from diabetic nephropathy. The main function of the kidneys is to filter waste from your blood. However, this is not always the case. Due to high a concentration of blood sugar caused by diabetes, several blood vessels in the kidney are destroyed, thereby, preventing the kidneys from carrying out its job. Over time, the kidneys may stop working altogether, resulting in kidney failure. If you are diabetic, the probability of you suffering from diabetic nephropathy will increase if you smoke or have high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

Catching it early
Today, diabetic nephropathy is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease in the US and other western countries. Since the symptoms of this condition aren t visible in its early stages, you need to undergo urine tests on a regular basis. If detected early, the effects of diabetic nephropathy can be reversed. Common symptoms of this disease include the following:

Swelling in legs and feet
Detection of albumin in urine
Decline in glomerular filtration rate (GFR)
Elevated arterial blood pressure
What are the treatment options?
Medication to lower the blood pressure is the most commonly prescribed form of treatment suggested by doctors to prevent or slow the damage to your kidneys. There are other lifestyle changes that you may have to undertake in order to keep a check on the condition:

Limit sugar intake and keep blood sugar levels within the target range
Exercise regularly and work towards keeping your heart healthy
Limit protein intake, as it could put extra pressure on your kidneys
Limit salt intake to control blood pressure
Quit smoking and drinking
Diabetes is an unfortunate condition to have to live with. But don t let it bog you down! With these simple lifestyle changes and taking care of your general well-being, you can beat the disease and emerge a winner!

Diabetic Nephropathy - Who is at Risk of Acquiring it?

The pair of kidneys that human beings have, forms an important part in the excretory system. They perform specific and important functions. They excrete urine as well as help in eliminating the toxins, which accumulate in the body. Kidney stones occur when the minerals present in the urine without being discharged, keep on accumulating. This gives rise to an extremely painful and uncomfortable situation. Though sometimes the situation gets revoked all by itself, many a times it requires medical intervention. 

Some of the symptoms of kidney stones are: 
1.  Excruciating pain in the back
2.  Pain while urinating
3.  Tendencies to vomit
4.  Dizziness
5.  Fever 

However, there are several preventive measures which you can undertake in order to avert the situation. Some of them are:
1.  Drink lots of water
Kidney stone is one of those rare conditions that once occurred, always carry the latent threat of recurring again. Therefore, drinking water in large quantities becomes essential. The more you drink water, the more frequently you would urinate, thereby curbing the chances of the minerals settling in the kidneys.
2.  Avoid certain foods
Food like beets, spinach, those which are replete with calcium oxalate should be avoided in order to minimize chances of having kidney stones.
3.  Change your diet
If you are trying to avoid the eventuality of developing kidney stones, it is imperative that you change your diet a bit. It is recommended that you exclude animal protein as much as possible and assiduously avoid the intake of salt as much as possible.
4.  Take less calcium supplements
Calcium generally is considered a nemesis to your kidneys and is prescribed by doctors to be avoided. However recent research has thwarted this claim. Calcium does not pose a threat to kidneys. However calcium supplements definitely do and therefore, should be avoided.

All About Kidney Stones

One single kidney in place of two is a scenario which is often termed as solitary kidney.

Who has a solitary kidney?

Their body functions normally and are generally not unhealthy. This is also known as renal agenesis.
In some cases, people are born with two kidneys with just one of them healthy and fully functional. The other one does not function fully or partially. This condition is known as kidney dysplasia.
A person who had to undergo a kidney removal surgery (nephrectomy); such a surgery is conducted when a person has an infected kidney or diseased, malfunctioning/cancerous growths on the kidney.
A person who has donated a kidney to someone who required kidney transplantation.
What potential health risks does a person with a solitary kidney have?

Normally, a person born with a single kidney does not have any such potential health risks. They are generally healthy and lead normal lives.
Later in life, there may or may not be slight loss or degradation in the functioning of the kidney.
The life span of a person with a single kidney is normal. There is no apparent effect on the mortality rates.
What kind of special diet must a person with a single kidney follow?

There is no need of any such special diet for a person with a single kidney.
Normal healthy balanced diet with all the essential nutrients should suffice.
You must be careful about your animal protein intake and calcium supplements.
Drink sufficient quantity of water to remain hydrated all day and prevent the urine from turning acidic.
Controlled consumption of alcohol and caffeine is a must. It is also important to reduce the consumption of aerated drinks.
Exercises and Physical activities for a person with a single kidney:

A person with a solitary kidney can function like any other normal individual.
You may also participate in sports. However, you must take enough precaution to prevent injuries to your kidney. Proper padding and protection around your lower abdominal region and back is of utmost necessity.
You can hit the gym, run a marathon and nothing is impossible for you.

Living With Solitary Kidney - Things You Need to Know!

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