If you don't have enough fluids in your body, the brain communicates with the kidneys by sending out a hormone that tells the kidneys to hold on to some fluids. When you drink more, this hormone level goes down, and the kidneys will let go of more fluids. You might notice that sometimes your pee is darker in color than other times. Remember, pee is made up of water plus the waste that is filtered out of the blood.
If you don't take in a lot of fluids or if you're exercising and sweating a lot, your pee has less water in it and it looks darker. If you're drinking lots of fluids, the extra fluid comes out in your pee, and it will be lighter. Kidneys are always busy. Besides filtering the blood and balancing fluids every second during the day, the kidneys constantly react to hormones that the brain sends them.
Kidneys even make some of their own hormones. For example, the kidneys produce a hormone that tells the body to make red blood cells. Now you know what the kidneys do and how important they are. Maybe next Valentine's Day, instead of the same old heart, you can give your parents a special card featuring the kidneys!
Reviewed by: Larissa Hirsch, MD. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. What Are Kidneys? What Do Kidneys Do? Page 1 The Path of Pee The waste that is collected combines with water which is also filtered out of the kidneys to make urine pee. Here's a list of all of the parts of the urinary system: the kidneys: filters that take the waste out of the blood and make pee the ureters: tubes that carry the urine from each kidney to the bladder the bladder: a sac that collects the pee the urethra: a tube that carries the pee from the bladder out of the body Keeping a Balance The kidneys also balance the volume of fluids and minerals in the body.
If osmolality rises in the blood plasma, the hypothalamus in the brain responds by passing a message to the pituitary gland. This, in turn, releases antidiuretic hormone ADH. The kidneys regulate blood pressure when necessary, but they are responsible for slower adjustments. They adjust long-term pressure in the arteries by causing changes in the fluid outside of cells.
The medical term for this fluid is extracellular fluid. These fluid changes occur after the release of a vasoconstrictor called angiotensin II. Vasoconstrictors are hormones that cause blood vessels to narrow. This effectively increases the size of the extracellular fluid compartment and raises blood pressure.
Anything that alters blood pressure can damage the kidneys over time, including excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and obesity.
Environmental or medical factors may lead to kidney disease, and they can cause functional and structural problems from birth in some people. In people with diabetic nephropathy, damage occurs to the capillaries of the kidney as a result of long-term diabetes.
Symptoms include lower back pain , painful urination, and sometimes fever. Changes in the urine may include the presence of blood, cloudiness, and a different odor. Kidney infections are more common in women than in men, as well as in women who are pregnant.
The infection often responds well to antibiotics. In people with renal failure, the kidneys become unable to filter out waste products from the blood effectively. If an injury causes kidney failure, such as the overuse of medication, the condition is often reversible with treatment.
It usually occurs when an obstruction prevents urine from leaving the kidney, causing intense pain. Two ureters might form between a kidney and the bladder, rather than one. There are few complications, but it can increase the risk of urinary tract infections and, in females, incontinence. Duplicated ureter affects around 1 percent of people.
Treatment usually involves removing the cause of inflammation or changing a course of medication. These can be benign or malignant. Benign cancers do not spread or attack tissue, but malignant cancers can be aggressive. The most common malignant kidney cancer is renal cell carcinoma. Damage to the kidney function causes protein levels in the urine to increase. This results in a protein shortage throughout the body, which draws water into the tissues.
Changes in urination and lower back pain, especially on one side, may be signs of kidney problems. In the case of severe kidney damage, dialysis might be an option. It is only used for end-stage kidney failure where 85 to 90 percent of kidney function is lost. Hemodialysis : An artificial kidney, or hemodialyzer, removes waste , additional fluids, and chemicals. Most of the water and other substances that filter through your glomeruli are returned to your blood by the tubules.
Only 1 to 2 quarts become urine. Clinical trials are part of clinical research and at the heart of all medical advances. Clinical trials look at new ways to prevent, detect, or treat disease. Researchers also use clinical trials to look at other aspects of care, such as improving the quality of life for people with chronic illnesses. Find out if clinical trials are right for you. Clinical trials that are currently open and are recruiting can be viewed at www.
The NIDDK translates and disseminates research findings to increase knowledge and understanding about health and disease among patients, health professionals, and the public.
How do my kidneys work? How does blood flow through my kidneys? Clinical Trials The kidneys are two bean-shaped organs, each about the size of a fist. You have two kidneys that filter your blood, removing wastes and extra water to make urine. Why are the kidneys important?
Without this balance, nerves, muscles, and other tissues in your body may not work normally. Your kidneys also make hormones that help control your blood pressure make red blood cells keep your bones strong and healthy Watch a video about what the kidneys do.
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