Natural Kidney Function Boosters

Kidneys are bean shaped organs located at the back of abdomen. Each kidney is 4-5 inches long. Each of the two kidneys is composed of millions of Nephrons, which are like microscopic filter for blood. The blood in our body passes through the kidneys several times in a day. It extracts excess water, mineral and wastes from the blood and this is how urine is formed.

Importance of kidneys

The importance of kidneys is directly linked to its functions. Some main functions of the kidneys are mentioned below:

• One of the most important functions of kidneys is to filter the waste materials out of the blood. The different chemical reactions occurring during the delivering of blood to all parts of the body makes blood impure. This blood has to go somewhere for its cleaning; that job is done by kidneys. 
• Kidneys also regulate the water content in the body. They remove excess water from the body and only keep it within the normal range, which is essential for proper body functioning.
• The excess minerals are removed from the body through kidneys. When the kidneys are working properly, they remove excess minerals from the body like sodium and potassium. 
• Another important function of kidneys is to make important chemical messengers known as hormones. Moreover, they also regulate important body functions such as the making of red blood cells, blood pressure, and maintenance of calcium content in the blood.
• Kidneys also regulate blood pressure. When the blood pressure gets too low, kidneys increase the pressure by producing a special kind of hormone called “angiotensin”, which helps retains sodium and water.

Natural ways to boost your kidney functions

Detoxification of kidneys is very important. It isn’t only helpful for the kidneys but it also helps the overall body. When kidneys are healthy, other parts of the body also remain healthy. The reason is that they filter blood.  On the flip side, if kidneys aren’t healthy, they won’t be able to take bad elements and toxins out of the blood which can cause several diseases. For instance, if kidneys fail to filter uric acid from blood, the result is diseases like gout and arthritis and so on. Therefore, it is necessary to take good care of kidneys.

Some natural ways for cleansing the kidneys have been mentioned below:

1. Drinking Plenty of Water: Drinking plenty of water is very important for the health of kidneys. Drinking water not only increases the metabolism rate, it also removes wastes and also lowers the risks of formation of kidney stones. However, drinking beverages that contain a high amount of sugar and caffeine might be harmful. So, purified water is a better choice for drinking. 
2. Drink juices: Just drinking juice vegetables for a week or more is beneficial for kidneys. An important food to juice is parsley. A beneficial thing about this juice is that it binds with heavy metals and flushes them out of the kidneys. You can also drink tomato juice and other vegetable juices for the health of your kidneys.
3. Avoid Alcohol: Too much alcohol intake is damaging for kidneys. When a person is drunk, kidneys have to work a lot to purify the blood stream by removing alcohol. This wears the kidneys and consequently, it is dements the kidney function in a long run.
4. Eating Melons: You will notice some cleansing changes in your body after eating a dose of melons. One important change that you will notice is that you will urinate more after eating them.
5. Eat the right kind of Food: The foods we eat greatly affect our body.  If the foods are unhealthy and toxic, they will harm the body tissues and organs and vice versa. It is, therefore, important to eat the right kind of food. Some foods to eat in order to improve your kidney health are chicken, fish, meat, eggs, dairy, nuts, grains, bread, pasta, rice, rice milk, cabbage, cauliflower, onion, blueberries,  raspberries, red grapes, egg whites, olive oil. On the other hand, one should avoid the following foods, which may be harmful to your kidneys: Chocolate, nuts, soy yogurt, soy cheese, hard cheese, cheese spreads, deli meats, crackers, potatoes, tomatoes, spinach, avocados.
6. Exercise: Exercise improves the kidney’s health as it reduces blood pressure and increases sensitivity to insulin. Lack of insulin in the body can, along with many other problems, lead to diabetes. Regular exercise also increases the body’s natural resistance against diabetes and high blood pressure. Moreover, exercising creates sweat. Hence, it is also another way to remove toxins from the body and lessens the burden on kidneys.
7. Relaxing the Body: Stress and kidney problems have direct relation. Perhaps the reason is higher levels of cortisol, a hormone released during stress. This hormone makes kidneys function at a higher rate by conserving salt and water.  Relaxing the body can prove helpful in this regard. A person should find a hobby which calms him. 
8. Watching the Weight: Obesity is a greater risk of a kidney disease like kidney stones and kidney cancer. A research conducted by Johns Hopkins University has proved that obesity doubles the risks of kidney disease. Watching your daily diet, eating a sensible wholesale foods diet and a regular exercise program can help you to keep your weight under control. 
9. Taking the right amount of supplements: To boost your kidneys naturally, you can also take supplements. You can take vitamin D supplements.  A recent research has shown that vitamin D deficiency and kidney problems have an inverse relation with each other. When you take more vitamin D, you will be exposed to fewer kidney problems.  The one reason being vitamin D helps absorb calcium through kidneys and lessens the chances of kidney stones. Moreover, other supplements like cranberry extracts can also be included in a diet. These red berries protect the bladder. Moreover, they also protect the lining of kidneys, keeping bacteria away.