KNOWING YOUR KIDNEY ORGAN

When it comes to asking how significant our kidneys are, they are as much important to our health as our heart or our lungs. This is because kidneys remove waste products from our body, regulate water and produce hormones. Each kidney is reddish brown in color, shaped like a kidney bean, and about the size of our fist. However, when there is a serious problem occurred within the organ, it is literally referred to "Kidney Stone".

First of all, kidney stone disease is one of the most common problems of the urinary system. The number of people in United States with this particular health issue is reported to be rising. In the year of 1980, for example, previous studies illustrated that about 3 in every 100 people got a kidney stone at some point in their life. Additionally, that said figure rose in the year of 1994 whereby up to 5 in every 100 people. At this stage, 1 in 10 Americans will have a kidney stone to the point where even children who are suffering from the disease has also become more common in recent years. Bottom line, kidney stones are often very painful and such a race, gender, as well as ethnicity play a contributing part in who may have the disease.

Talking about from medical perspectives, kidney stones can become a costly problem in terms of time and money. Our urinary system is made up of the kidneys, the ureters, the bladder, and the urethra. Each plays an important role in helping our body to eliminate waste products in the form of urine. Because the main job of the kidneys is to remove waste products from our blood and return the cleaned blood back to our body, the ureters carry the waste products in the form of urine from the kidneys to the bladder. At this point, the urine is stored in the bladder until we urinate (pee), as it passes out of the body through a tube called the urethra.

Furthermore, kidney stones may start small and may not cause any issues at an initial phase. However, kidney stones can grow larger in size, even filling the inner hollow structures of the kidney itself. Some stones, perhaps, stay in the kidney and will never cause any problems. However, if the stone becomes lodged in the ureter and blocks the urine flow from your kidney organ, then this is where you may find it painful to bear with.

What are Kidney Stones made of?

By nature, kidney stones come in many types and colors. The way your kidney stones will be treated depends on the type of stone you have. What’s more, the path to prevent new stones from forming will also depend on your stone type. When questioning what the kidney stones are made of, calcium stones are the most common type. There are two types of calcium stones; one is calcium oxalate and the other one is calcium phosphate. Calcium oxalate is more prevalent. Some people have too much calcium in their urine, raising their risk. Even with normal amounts of calcium in the urine, calcium stones may form for other reasons. Whatever it is, the amount of calcium stones which contribute to the formation of kidney stones is about 80 percent.

On the other hand, uric acid stone which contributes roughly around 5 to 10 percent is a waste product that comes from chemical changes in the body. Uric acid crystals, in addition, do not dissolve well in acidic urine but it will form a uric acid stone instead. Perhaps, there are some causes of how acidic urine may come from, such as:

- Being overweight.

- Chronic diarrhea.

- Type 2 Diabetes (High Blood Sugar).

- A diet that is high in animal protein and low in fruits and vegetables.