A Public Service Announcement

March is National Kidney Month-

How to Care for Your Kidneys

You know that a healthy heart and brain are vital to good health. But when’s the last time you thought about your kidneys? Each March, National Kidney Month reminds Americans what makes these organs so important. But it’s best to keep your kidneys in mind the whole year through.
Your kidneys are 2 bean-shaped organs found at the level of your middle back, below your ribcage. Like your heart, they’re each about the size of your fist. Kidneys play a key role in the body. They remove waste products that build up in your blood, along with extra water. These waste products then pass out of your body as urine. If your kidneys shut down or stop working as they should, it can lead to serious health problems, blogs like this, and all sorts of other things.
There are 2 major risk factors for kidney disease. These include diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure). If you have one of these health problems, you can help manage your condition through exercise, diet, and other healthy living choices. Follow these tips to help protect your kidneys:

• Shoot for 30 minutes of exercise, 5 days a week.
• Try to trim down if you’re overweight (even losing a few pounds can greatly improve your health). 
• Limit the amount of salt in your diet (check food labels for sodium content).   Yeah Yeah OK OK.
• Cut back on alcohol if you drink. 
• Fill up on fresh fruits, veggies, and low-fat dairy foods. 
• Seek out healthy ways to relieve stress. (Try yoga, painting, or meditation. Stay away from photography).
• Nix the tobacco habit (cigarettes, cigars, chew, and all).

These tips are tailored to people with diabetes and hypertension. But anyone can better care for their kidneys by making a few of these changes. Although they’re not the most familiar part of the body, your kidneys deserve some extra TLC.

Thanks for passing this along Debbie!