Your kidneys act as living filters that remove toxins from the bloodstream and allow you to expel them from your body in urine. Kidney stones, kidney disease and other ailments that affect the organ can be painful and even deadly, so maintaining...
Prednisone is prescribed by doctors for disorders caused by a lack of corticosteroids or those with an inflammatory component. Although prednisone is an effective treatment for troublesome conditions, it has many side effects, including weight...
NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, are a class of drugs used to control pain and reduce fever. In higher doses, they also mediate inflammation and swelling. (See References 1) NSAIDs typically act by inhibiting the synthesis of...
Hematin (or panhematin) is an iron that acts as an enzyme inhibitor and comes from processing red blood cells. It's used to treat liver diseases such as acute jaundice. Hematin is processed as a dry powder and reconstituted with sterile water so...
Diclofenac is a commonly prescribed NSAID used in treatment of pain from arthritis, inflammation and migraine headaches. Common mild side effects of Diclofenac include bloating, intestinal gas and ringing in the ears. More serious side effects...
According to the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association and the National Institutes of Health, as many as 23.5 million Americans are diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. Researchers have been able to identify as many as 100 different...
Hydronephrosis is characterized by a warping or ballooning of the renal pelvis and calyxes in the kidney, caused by increased pressure inside the kidney due to a blockage to the free flow of urine. The renal pelvis is a funnel-like tube that forms...
According to the National Kidney Foundation, more than 20 million Americans have chronic kidney disease and 20 million others are at increased risk. One way to help prevent and treat kidney conditions is through complementary medicine and its use...
Dialysis is a treatment required when the kidneys can no longer take care of the body's needs. Dialysis is necessary when end-stage kidney failure develops, usually when 85 to 90 percent of kidney function is lost, states the National Kidney...
Lopressor and hydrochlorothiazide are sometimes combined into an oral medication for the treatment of increased blood pressure, or hypertension. HCT is a diuretic of the thiazide class, and lopressor is a beta1-selective blocker, which means it...
Taking more than 500 to 600 milligrams of caffeine daily has been associated with adverse effects such as stomach upset and arrhythmia, MayoClinic.com says. Moderate caffeine doses of 200 to 300 milligrams, roughly equal to between two and four...
Casein is one of the most commonly consumed proteins, making up anywhere from 70 to 80 percent of the protein found in milk. There are three or four different casein types in the milk of most mammal species, and these casein proteins play a...
Fish oil, particularly from cold-water fish, such as salmon, cod and mackerel, contains high quantities of the essential fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA, and docosahexanoic acid, or DHA. Fish do not produce these fatty acids, but instead...
Flaxseed, the tiny seed of the same flax plant from which linen fabric is produced, offers health benefits in a variety of ways. Flaxseed oil contains the essential fatty acid alpha linolenic acid, ALA, and whole flaxseed provides fiber and other...
Polycystic kidney disease is a chronic kidney disease, that remains incurable as of 2011. Patients often experience renal failure and receive renal replacement therapy, typically dialysis or a transplant. Many nephrologists add fish oil to their...
Caffeine may be the most common drug in the human food supply. That mug of breakfast coffee, the cup of tea in the afternoon, the energy drink or cola on a hot day – each contains caffeine. You may think of caffeine as a mild stimulant and...
The kidneys are bean-shaped organs, each about the size of a fist and are essential for keeping our blood clean and chemically balanced. The kidneys produce urine that contains salts, toxins and water and are the by-products of our body's...
Patients with various health conditions may require diagnostic and imaging procedures that use radiocontrast dye. Unfortunately, contrast dye has been associated with elevations in serum creatinine indicating an acute decline in renal function....
Also known by the generic name naproxen, Aleve is part of a group of drugs categorized as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs. Aleve reduces hormones that cause inflammation and pain, and is therefore used to treat a variety of...
The kidneys are located behind the abdomen and are present in both flanks. Because the kidneys are vital for life, they are well protected. However, in rare cases, they can become injured, resulting in a kidney bruise.
The liver and the kidneys clear toxins and chemicals from the body. However, some medications can affect the function of these organs. The Hospice website notes that nonprescription analgesic drugs such as ibuprofen can cause or worsen problems in...
Physicians prescribe Lodine (etodolac) to reduce joint pain, stiffness, swelling and inflammation from osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Lodine is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that reduces the hormones that cause...
A nitrate is a chemical entity composed of nitrogen and oxygen atoms. Nitrates such as those obtained from fertilizer-contaminated water are known to be harmful to health. On the other hand, recent research is suggesting that consumption of small...
Polycystic Kidney Disease, PKD, is a genetic disorder that causes the growth of fluid-filled cysts in the kidneys, eventually causing kidney failure in many cases. Several herbs have been the subject of clinical studies with encouraging results....
Although the kidneys occupy a protected area toward the back of the abdomen, these vital organs remain subject to traumatic injury. Motor vehicle accidents, falls and other high-force trauma to the abdomen or back can cause kidney injury. A...
Ginger, also know as Zingiber officinale, is commonly used as a spice and as an alternative treatment for a variety of diseases. Tea made from ginger is promoted in health food outlets and on the Internet for its purported protective benefits in...
Sodium is an electrolyte that plays a significant role in many of the body's functions. Disruption of the mechanisms that normally contribute to the maintenance of a tight range of sodium in the blood can lead to elevated sodium levels in your...
Renal failure is kidney failure, or when the kidneys fail to function well enough to filter waste products and remove excess water from the body via the bloodstream. Kidney failure leads to retention of water and the buildup of waste that can...
The kidneys -- bean-shaped organs located in the middle of the back -- filter 200 quarts of blood daily to produce approximately 2 quarts of urine. Certain foods offer particular preventive and healing properties that keep these filters...
