Kidney Basics
This organ filters waste from your blood.
Kidney
It removes toxins and extra fluid to keep your blood clean.
Drinking this helps your kidneys stay healthy.
Water
It helps kidneys flush out waste more easily.
This happens when kidneys stop working properly.
Kidney disease
Waste builds up in the body.
Healthy kidneys help control this by balancing fluids and salt in your body.
Blood Pressure
Where in the body is the kidney located?
There are two below the rib cage on either side of the spine
Humans usually have this many kidneys.
Two
But people can live with one healthy kidney.
This activity helps keep your whole body, including kidneys, healthy.
Exercise
It helps control blood pressure and weight.
High levels of this can damage your kidneys.
High blood pressure
It strains kidney blood vessels.
How likely are you to get kidney disease?
One in three American adults is at risk for kidney disease.
Size and shape of kidney
bean-shaped organs, roughly the size of a fist
This liquid waste leaves your body after kidneys filter blood.
Urine
It carries waste and extra water out of the body.
Too much of this in food can hurt your kidneys over time.
Salt (sodium)
It raises blood pressure and strains kidneys.
This machine cleans your blood if your kidneys fail.
Dialysis
It replaces the kidney’s filtering job.
Kidneys filter your blood about this many times per day.
About 50 times
What doctor is known as a kidney specialist?
A nephrologist
This system includes the kidneys, bladder, and ureters.
Urinary system
It removes waste and keeps fluids balanced.
Taking too many of these pain relievers can harm your kidneys.
Ibuprofen or medications such as NSAIDs
Overuse reduces blood flow to kidneys.
This term describes when kidneys suddenly stop working.
Kidney failure
It requires urgent treatment.
These tiny filtering units inside your kidneys clean your blood.
Nephrons
Each kidney has about 1 million of them.
What destroys kidneys the most?
Uncontrolled diabetes and high blood pressure (hypertension)
Kidneys help control this body fluid level.
Water
They carefully balance how much stays or leaves your body.
This condition with high blood sugar is a leading cause of kidney disease.
Diabetes
It damages kidney blood vessels over time.
This long-term condition slowly damages the kidneys, often without early symptoms.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD)
Damage happens gradually over time.
This mineral is balanced by kidneys to help keep bones strong.
Calcium
Urinary