It’s important to take care of your overall health – and this includes taking care of your kidneys. Things you can do include:
- getting a Kidney Health Check. Ask your doctor for a blood pressure check, a urine test and a blood test to check your kidney health at your next visit.
- managing any other diseases. If you have high blood pressure or diabetes, be sure to take any medicines prescribed by your doctor for these conditions. Kidney health and other disease are linked.
- eating a kidney healthy diet and getting enough exercise.
Managing your kidney health
Kidneys are the unsung heroes of our bodies and perform a number of important jobs. They control your blood pressure, clean your blood, create urine (wee), and balance your minerals. The kidneys help keep your bones strong and play a role in creating red blood cells.
There are several ways to maintain kidney health. Here are our top five:
- Avoid smoking. People who smoke are three times more likely to have reduced kidney function. If you smoke and you’d like to take the first step to quit, that’s great news. You can call the Quitlink on 13 78 48 or visit www.quitnow.gov.au.
- Stick to a healthy diet. Eat a balanced diet consisting of fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, proteins and low-fat dairy products. Reduce salt intake to <5 grams per day.
- Get enough exercise. Where possible, minimise long periods of time sitting and aim for 2.5 – 5 hours of exercise per week.
- Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water and avoid sugary drinks like soft drink and fruit juice. Drink enough to satisfy your thirst.
- Minimise alcohol. Excessive drinking can lead to high blood pressure, and this increases the risk of kidney disease. We recommended limiting your intake to less than ten standard drinks a week and no more than four drinks per day. The less alcohol the better.
Even if you know what kidney disease is, it can be difficult to tell if you have it. If you are in early stages, you will feel normal. There are no obvious signs; you can lose up to 90 per cent of kidney function before symptoms appear. You’re most likely to notice kidney disease in the middle stages, as levels of waste in your blood increase and you start to feel unwell.
If you’re wondering whether kidney disease might be relevant to you, be aware of the risk factors that may lead to kidney failure in the future and have a chat to your doctor.
For more information, you can take the Kidney Risk Test.
Kidney Health 4 Life
Ready to take control of your kidney health? Kidney Health 4 Life is an exciting and innovating health and wellbeing program equipping people, and those that care for them, with the knowledge and resources to take more active management of their kidney health or kidney disease
Suggested resources
Drink water instead factsheet
Salt and your kidneys factsheet
Sugar and your kidneys factsheet
Looking after yourself with chronic kidney disease factsheet
Managing Kidney Disease Symptoms factsheet
