According To A Study, With These Simple Measures We Would Take Better Care Of The Heart And Kidneys
All those who take care of their heart health are much less likely to have kidney disease.
Addressing factors such as stress, sedentary lifestyle or poor diet would not only improve our quality of life in general, but it could also prolong the health of our kidneys and heart until advanced ages.
It is clear that there may be genetic problems or kidney failure to deal with, regardless of whether our heart is healthy and strong.
However, according to a study published in the American Heart Association medical journal , people who usually follow 5 basic guidelines in their lifestyle to take care of the heart also reduce the chances of kidney disease.
Protect the heart to take care of the kidneys
The heart and the kidneys have a very intimate relationship. On the one hand, the kidneys are in charge of filtering all the blood from the circulatory system.
Every day they “clean” the blood of all kinds of waste and excess fluids and then eliminate them through the urine.
In turn, the heart pumps all the blood through the body and, especially, towards the kidneys so that it is purified and carried back to the whole organism.
The malfunction, both of the kidneys and of the heart, generates various diseases.
In fact, problems such as high blood pressure or heart failure generate serious complications in our renal system. It is important to keep this in mind.
The study
The study was carried out at the John Hopkins University in Baltimore (United States) and the work was directed in turn by the doctor in epidemiology Casey M. Rebholz.
14,832 people between the ages of 45 and 64 were followed . Over 22 years, their lifestyles were assessed to find out how heart and kidney health were related.
Of the total number of patients evaluated, a third developed chronic renal failure.
Among those who reached old age with good heart health, it was found that, on average, they also enjoyed good kidney health.
Factors such as smoking, body mass index, sedentary lifestyle, blood pressure, and blood glucose were directly associated with chronic kidney disease (in addition to heart disease).
Another determining factor was the narrowing of the arteries. In turn, atherosclerosis damages the blood vessels of the kidneys and prevents them from carrying out basic functions such as the synthesis of various hormones.
Thanks to this study, the researchers were able to isolate in turn 5 key factors that would allow us to take care of the heart to also enjoy good kidney health. We explain them below.
5 factors to take care of your heart and kidney health
1. Stop smoking
If you are a smoker – or if you are a passive smoker without wanting to – you need to eliminate this habit that is so harmful to your health.
2. Get 150 minutes of exercise a week
If we think about it, it is not a great effort either. To take care of our heart and kidney system, we would need to perform only one series of aerobic exercises, for 30 minutes, 5 days a week.
Simply go for a walk, bike ride, dance, or do a series of push-ups and stretches at home. It costs nothing and does a lot for our health.
3. Two pieces of fruit a day
Eat natural, unprocessed and organic fruit, if possible. The first piece at breakfast, and if it is an apple, much better. The second at noon or mid-afternoon.
If you choose a sweet fruit, such as a plum, a pear, or a few cherries, it is always best to consume them in the morning.
It is important, in turn, that you take care of the rest of your diet: avoid fats, foods with a lot of sodium and do not forget about fiber: it is very good to eliminate cholesterol from our arteries!
4. It is important to fight against abdominal fat
Monitor your weight in a healthy way. Keep in mind that the fat stored in the waist is a dangerous factor for the heart and, consequently, for the kidneys.
5. Take care of your cholesterol
One of the problems we usually have with cholesterol is that it does not have too many symptoms. If we add to this that we do not usually take blood tests as often as we should, the risk increases.
A silent and harmful risk of which we are not aware . Take care of your diet and establish regular check-ups with your doctor every six months, for example.
In conclusion, as you can see, they are not very different things from what we already know.
Therefore, the most important thing is, above all, to become aware of the need to take care of ourselves, to worry much more about those harmful lifestyle habits that, day by day, are putting us in danger.
