What is nephrology? When I tell people what I do, I’m usually either met with a blank stare or people proceed to tell me about their grandmother who had a stroke. Well, I believe they were actually thinking of a neurologist. Nephrology on the other hand comes from a Greek term meaning the study of the kidney. In other words, a nephrologist is a kidney doctor. Now the kidneys don’t get as much attention as the brain or the heart, but they are vital organs and you can’t survive without them.
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With an aging population and an increasing incidence of chronic diseases like diabetes, kidney disease is becoming more and more common. So let’s spend some time talking about what your kidneys do and why you should care about them.
First of all, each of us has two kidneys that actually do bear a striking resemblance to a kidney bean. Your kidneys are located behind the abdominal cavity embedded in your back, on either side of your spine. They are seated just above the bottom of your rib cage which affords them some protection. Each kidney has a tube called the ureter that drains the urine produced by the kidney into the bladder where it remains until you choose to expel it. We’ll talk more about urine later.
The primary responsibility of the kidney is to maintain a hospitable environment within your body so that all of your organs can function properly. It does so by performing three major functions.
First, the kidneys control the amount of fluid within our bodies. We’re made up of about 60% water, and in order to keep it that way, the kidneys excrete any excess fluid that you don’t need. If we go to the other extreme where you’re dehydrated, the kidneys can conserve fluid as well by reducing the amount of urine that is produced.
Second, the kidneys regulate the electrolytes within your body. Electrolytes are essentially salts like sodium, potassium, and calcium that are dissolved in the body. The relative levels of these electrolytes is critical in maintaining the normal function of each one of the billions of cells that we’re made of. Think of it as something similar to how there has to be a very specific balance of oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide within our atmosphere for us to survive here on earth. Likewise, the kidneys help to maintain the electrolyte environment so that cells can thrive within the body.
Lastly, the kidneys help to keep your body free of pollution. Do you know how your car engine produces exhaust from the combustion of gasoline that then comes out the back of the tail pipe? Well your body is just a more sophisticated engine that also consumes energy and produces waste products which must be expelled. The kidneys do so by filtering your blood and removing these waste products which are then excreted in the urine.
I hope this discussion helps to demystify the kidney a little bit. So the next time you urinate, take a second to acknowledge your kidneys and the hard work that they do every day. • About Dr. Chang
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