Chronic kidney disease can be a serious, life threatening condition. Fortunately there are many steps along the way you can take for the treatment of chronic kidney disease, from the time it is diagnosed on. Many people have a mild form of kidney disease. The severity of your kidney damage will certainly affect your treatment. For most people with kidney disease close work with a health care provider is necessary to ensure proper treatment.

Most people with kidney disease will need to follow strict dietary guidelines to ensure their health is taken care of in the best way possible. The better care you take of your health the less likely you are to experience complications from severe kidney damage.

Some of the more common treatment guidelines associated with the care of chronic kidney disease includes the following:

• Restriction of dietary protein. This is to help prevent leaking of protein into the urine. Typically the kidneys help filter the blood and break down protein. Too much protein in the diet can place unnecessary stress and burden on the kidneys, so your health care provider may recommend treatment guidelines that limit your daily intake of protein.

• Limitation of your daily intake of sodium, which may help reduce the amount of fluid you retain during the day. This may help reduce your blood pressure. Often people with chronic kidney disease have high blood pressure. Sometimes high blood pressure leads to chronic kidney disease ironically.

• Reduced intake of potassium, because the kidneys are not able to reduce the amount of potassium in the body and blood. Having too much potassium in your body can lead to many serious problems including abnormal heart rhythms. There are many foods that can contribute to increased potassium in the body. These may include oranges, nuts, potatoes and other potassium rich foods, like some prunes even.

• Reduction in the amount of phosphorus rich foods you eat, as this can destroy your bones. There are many foods that contain phosphorus, and decreasing the amount of phosphorus intake can help people with chronic kidney disease help protect their bones. Perhaps one of the biggest sources of phosphorus for many people is soda pop. Other foods that contain phosphorus include eggs and other dairy products. Some dairy is ok, including butter.

• Stop smoking and drinking alcohol, which can contribute to poor overall health.

• Increase your intake of iron if you have anemia, which can lead to fatigue and sleepiness, which are common symptoms and side effects of chronic kidney damage. You may not be able to increase your intake of meat, but you can increase your intake of other iron rich foods, or your doctor may prescribe a supplement depending on the severity of your disease.

• Get plenty of rest and adequate exercise, particularly if you have diabetes. Diabetes is often a cause or underlying condition that leads to chronic kidney damage.

• Treat underlying conditions that lead to chronic kidney disease, including heart disease and diabetes. If you do not treat the underlying conditions then treating chronic kidney disease will have little impact if any. You must treat both conditions simultaneously to have the maximum impact on your total body health.

• Reduce your intake of toxic substances or illegal drugs into the body, which can further harm the body.

• Reduce your intake of medications that can cause damage to the body or cause stress to the body’s organs and kidney, including NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents. Your doctor may prescribe these for pain, or you may take them regularly for pain, over-the-counter or otherwise.

There are some other natural remedies for helping treat kidney disorders. These may include supplementing your diet with natural diuretics that may help with fluid retention, including sipping certain herbal teas like nettle leaf and horsetail tea. You may need to consult with your health care provider first to make sure any herbal supplements are safe and will not further stress your already burdened kidneys.

You can also eat several small meals each day instead of three larger ones to reduce the stress on your body. Some people find drinking unsweetened cranberry juice helpful for reducing the frequency of urinary tract infections, which can lead to kidney infections, and thus kidney damage.

Duncan Capicchiano N.D. is a fully qualified Naturopath, Author, and Medical researcher specializing in kidney disease. For more information on chronic kidney disease treatment or how you can improve your kidney function naturally, please visit his website at www.KidneyDiseaseSecrets.com where you can grab a FREE copy of his kidney disease secrets mini-course.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Duncan_Capicchiano
http://EzineArticles.com/?Simple-Tips-For-The-Treatment-Of-Chronic-Kidney-Disease&id=5030266

Common people might have no idea the difference between back pain and kidney pain; even, some might do not know how the two pains actually feel. The fact is, people need to be able to identify and differ the back pain and kidney pain; for if they misidentified them, bad things as more severe kidney pain is potentially occur. Indeed, back pain has quite similar pain characteristics to kidney pain, so people cannot differentiate them.

Therefore, if they suffer from a pain in the back, which they identify as usual back pain, they tend to ignore it. Truth is, a certain pain in the backside of the body is probably kidney pain, which is sometimes caused by kidney stone. Therefore, there are people out there who are suffering from kidney from years, but they got late medication, for a blunder in identifying the back pain and kidney pain. If you have no idea the differences between two pains, here are some information, so you will get a fast medication, once you realized that your pain is caused by kidney stone.

Firstly, let us talk about what back pain really is. Back pain is a mild or severe pain, which usually occurs on muscle, nerves, joint, spine, or even bone. This kind of pain is divided into four types; they are lower-back pain, upper-back pain, neck pain, and tailbone pain. As previously mentioned, kidney pain is caused by kidney stone, that is, a kind of kidney disorder, in which there is small stone-like sediment inside the ureter.

From the above explanation, we can actually draw a conclusion dealing with the basic difference between back pain and kidney pain. First, back pain can be felt in such areas like lower back, upper back, neck, and tailbone; kidney pain, on the other hand, can only be felt in lower-back are, in which the kidney lie. Second, kidney pain can only felt inside the body, that is, on lower-back part, while back pain can be felt in muscle, joint, bone, and so forth.

In addition, there are some further differences between back pain and kidney pain, from some factors and sides. The first difference is from the other symptoms.

Back pain is usually coming with pain in a certain part of the body only, while the kidney pain comes with nausea or fever. The second difference is from the frequencies of occurrences; back pain might be continuing, while kidney pain sometime comes and goes.

In addition, if you should need more detailed and thorough information about what back pain and kidney pain is, including their differences, you can get them in some media. You can get such more information from health or medical bulletin, which is usually published monthly. Yet, if it is somewhat bothersome, you can get the information from the cyber world, which is cheaper and more effective than gather the info from bulletin or magazine. Usually, the information about the two pains and their difference is available in medical or health blog, or in online journal. Hence, you need to ‘ask’ a search engine to look up for more information. More detailed information are usually also offered by online drug store, which is providing supplement or drug for both back pain and kidney pain.

Kidney stones or “urolithiasis” are known to develop in a person’s body when there is a collection of materials—such as minerals—to a small stone. These stones are commonly found in the kidney, but there are also those that stay in the ureter or in the bladder.

Also called “nephrolithiasis,” by physicians, kidney stones can cause a great deal of pain to an individual when it blocks the urine flow. When this is not diagnosed and given proper treatment as soon as possible, it can lead to a several kidney problems that can last for a long time.

Experts agree that one of the most effective means of treating kidney stones is through prevention. Unlike severe diseases and illnesses, kidney stones can easily be prevented if the person will set his or her mind into healthy lifestyle.

More and more studies show that among the primary causes of kidney stones—aside from clinical history, hereditary factor, and medical condition of a person—is unhealthy. This is by living a sedentary life with no regular physical exercise or routine and by eating foods that are not friendly to the kidney.

In order to prevent kidney stones, the first thing that people need to do is to take in lots of fluid, specifically water. Experts agree that the best way to prevent kidney stones is by flushing it out from the system. And what’s the best way to do it? By drinking a large amount of liquids, especially water which is free from major impurities.

Taking in lots of water everyday—at least 8 glasses or more—will flush out waste products in the body and can help dilute the minerals or other stone-forming materials such as salts present in the person’s urine. For those who are already suffering from kidney stones or those that are prone to it, experts say that they should avoid drinking liquids with other components such as sodas and other juices to avoid the fast formation of kidney stones.

Next is to develop certain modifications in diet. Undeniably, diet plays a huge role in maintaining good health. Keeping the body free from kidney stones will greatly depend on how balanced the diet of that person would be. Majority of kidney stone-sufferers today share the same type of stone—the calcium oxalate stone.

As the name suggests, this type of stone can only be developed with too many calcium intakes. Experts say that for people to veer away from kidney stones, they should cut down on foods that are high in calcium and oxalate such as dairy products including leafy vegetables, soda-colas, cranberries, chocolates, and peanuts.

To avoid developing stones made of salts, people should also avoid meals that have high sodium content. People should focus on eating foods that are high in fiber and should also increase their citric acid or vitamin C intake. By doing this, you can your kidney stones would be dissolved in no time due to the citric properties of citrus.

Lastly, to effectively prevent kidney stones, people who has it or those who are prone to it must take in proper medication. In severe cases of kidney stones, proper medication would help such as thiazide, sodium cellulose phosphate, oral calcium supplement, allopurinol, polycitra K, thiol, D-penicil-lamine, Acetohy-droxamic acid or AHA, and toradol to help relieve kidney pain and reduce the amount of stone-forming materials in the body.

Those people who are prone to kidney stones must familiarize themselves with the different types as early as possible so they would know what to adjust. Aside from setting lifestyles changes, knowing what type of kidney stones develop in the body is also important because it will help you do the things that will prevent their existence in your body system.

Many people are not aware of it but there are actually different types of kidney stones that some individuals suffer from. Among those types, the most common that most people develop is called “calcium oxalate stone.” While others are called “struvite stones,” “uric acid stones,” and “cystine stones.” These types vary depending on what cause them and their characteristics.

Medical alerts for kidney stones

To be able to address the condition properly, it a must for people who are prone to having kidney stones to familiarize themselves with the condition. In order to determine if one is suffering from kidney stones, here are some medical alerts or symptoms to be noted:

- pain in varying levels. As vague as it is, pain in varying levels is one of the major medical alerts of kidney stones. Considered as a common symptom for kidney stones, pain may vary depending on the size of the kidney stone and the length of time that it remains undiagnosed. Experts say that pain—which can be mild or extreme—is normal for people who suffer from kidney stones. This is because as the stone increases in size and weight, the more discomfort it brings especially during urination. Another form of pain that can be experienced due to kidney stones is from renal colic, which brings waves of severe pain that lasts for more than 10 minutes and can even last for an hour depending on the location of the kidney stone.

- presence of blood in the urine or the condition called “hematuria.”  The presence of blood in the urine is quite disturbing but this is one of the most common medical alerts of kidney stones.

Immediate diagnosis is a must

Most people don’t know it but almost 50 percent of the people who suffer from kidney stones would likely have them again in the next 10 years or so? This is because many of the sufferers do not continue medication and they cease from maintaining healthy diet and lifestyle.

People who are likely to suffer from kidney stones can go to any hospital’s Emergency Room or “ER”. Here, you can ask the attending physician or the hospital clerk on duty to undergo testing. It is advantageous for you to go straight in the ER because hospital people will attend to you directly. In most cases, it would take a long time before one can actually set at check up with a specialist. So it would be best if you go directly to the ER and get the prompt attention that you need.

Diagnosis can be done through an assessment of the person’s clinical history, a physical examination, laboratory evaluation, and x-ray for follow up. Having early diagnosis can definitely help you determine which type of kidney stone is present and would lead to faster and reliable treatments.

Once you feel pain in different extent along with nausea or vomiting, pain with urination, and at times, the urgent need to urinate which are usually characterized among children and adults, then you should have yourself checked by the doctor because you might be suffering from kidney stones.

Kidney stones form when minerals or salts which are normally found in the urine become solid. Most of the time, they are too tiny and do not cause any damage to the kidney because the body is able to expel it. But if they build up inside the kidney, then we have a problem.

The problem starts when the stones move out of the kidney and then go to through the ureters which are the little tubes that carry urine from the kidney to the bladder. If it gets stuck here, an infection will occur which may lead to kidney damage.

You will find out if you have a kidney problem when there is pain in one side of your back or on both, you experience spasms, notice bloody, cloudy or smelly urine, you don’t not feel well, you urinate frequently and when you have fevers and chills.

The symptoms mentioned are very similar to UTI or Urinary Tract Infection and you will only know what is going on when you have yourself checked by a doctor.

What causes kidney stones is still not known. What doctors know is that this happens often to men than to women.

These individuals fall within the 20 and 40 age group, have a family history of kidney stones, take certain medications such as antacids, diuretics and thyroid medications, have one kidney or one that is abnormally shaped, eat a lot of protein in their diet, often dehydrated, have poor mobility and have had a disease in the small intestine or small intestinal bypass. Although it is treatable, a new one can develop within the next 5 years.

Doctors tell the difference between UTI and kidney stones through a variety of tests. These include blood test, urine analysis, x-rays, ultrasound and non-contrast helical computerized tomography. If initial reports confirm the findings, then treatment is administered.

Treatment for someone who has a kidney stone varies per patient because this depends on the type of stone that is inside the body. If it is nothing serious, the doctor may not even have to do anything except tell you to drink lots of water and stay physically active.

It is going to hurt trying to expel the stones out from your system so this can be identified which is why you may be prescribed a paracetamol or codeine to reduce the pain. It is only when there is an infection that antibiotics will be given and surgery will have to be performed.

Examples of such procedures include extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy, ureteroscopic stone removal and percutaneous nephrolithotomy. In simple terms, the doctor may use one machine to break the stones down using shockwaves, by simply pulling it out or using later to cut them into small pieces.

Kidney stone can easily be removed thanks to advances in modern medicine. If you have one or you think that you could have one, it is best to visit your doctor to see what is really the problem and the proper action can be taken.

When it is all over and the kidney stones are removed, it is best to make some lifestyle changes because they could come back and you will have to go through this ordeal all over again. Surely, you wouldn’t want that to happen.

There are 4 kinds of kidney stones and these are formed by different salts found in your urine. What makes each one different is what caused it.

One of the most common is the calcium stone.

These stones can easily be identified because it looks spiky or at times large and smooth. The reason why these are called calcium stones is because these are made from calcium oxalate or calcium phosphate.

You may have calcium stones if you have excess levels of Vitamin D or an overactive parathyroid gland. This occurs frequently to people suffering from cancer or kidney disease.

The second type of kidney stone is the uric acid stones. These are smooth, soft and color brown and you get it from eating too much meat products. People who are at risk of this are patients who have just undergone chemotherapy.

The third type is the struvite or infection stones. These are big and appear like a horn like shape that often develops when you have excess amounts of ammonia in your body.

You are at risk of this if you already have UTI or urinary tract infection because the bacteria that causes this infection generates ammonia. Unlike the first two types of kidney stones, this one is generally found in women.

The fourth and last is the cystine stones. This is easy to tell because it is color yellow and crystalline. You can also have cystine stones if you have high levels of cystine in your urine. But this is very rare because it can only happen if you have a genetic order known as cystinuria. This occurs when kidney tubules are not reabsorbing the amino acids adequately.

The good news is that kidney stones can be treated and prevented. Sometimes drinking lots of water and taking some medication will help flush it out of the body. If the stones are too big, then surgery will be needed.

If you have had kidney stones in the past, remember that they can be happen again so you should take preventive measures. You should drink lots of water daily and make changes in your diet.

For instance, if you want to reduce the risk of developing calcium stones, you have to reduce your intake of certain vegetables such as asparagus and cooked spinach. You should also drink less tea and limit the chocolate you eat.

Since uric acid stones come from eating too much meat products, cut down your fish, meat and poultry intake. Should you be at risk for cystine or struvite stones, ask your doctor for preventive medication.

You will never know what kind of kidney stones are in your body unless you go visit a doctor. From there, he or she can tell you what it is and then recommend the proper treatment.  Most of the time, you can flush it out yourself but if there is no other choice, you may have to undergo surgery.

Believe it or not, in most cases doctors do not know what causes kidney stones to appear. They may have an idea what caused it after identifying what kind of stone it is and only recommend what preventive measures you can take so it does not happen again. If you don’t take this seriously, remember they do come back.