Save Your Kidneys : Eight Golden Rules

By Dr K K Agrawal

Chronic kidney disease can strike any one. Diabetes and high blood pressure are the two leading causes. Other risk factors for kidney disease include heart disease and a family history of kidney failure—a severe form of kidney disease.

If you have these risk factors, it is important to be screened for kidney disease. That usually involves simple laboratory tests: a urine test to look for kidney damage, and a blood test to measure how well the kidneys are working. The urine test checks for a protein called albumin, which is not routinely detected when your kidneys are healthy. The blood test checks your GFR—glomerular filtration rate. GFR is an estimate of filtering ability of your kidney.

A GFR below 60 is a sign of chronic kidney disease. A GFR below 15 is described as kidney failure.
Without treatment, kidney disease often gets worse. If your GFR drops below 15, you may feel tired and weak, with nausea, vomiting and itching. By that point, you may need a kidney transplant or dialysis.

      Following are the 8 Golden Rules to
      avoid or delay reaching the point of
      kidney failure:

1. Keep fit and active, it helps reduce your blood pressure and on the move for kidney health.
2. Keep regular control of your blood sugar level as about half of people who have diabetes develop kidney damage.
3. Monitor your blood pressure. It is also the most common cause of kidney damage. The normal blood pressure level is 120/80. Between this level and 129/89, you are considered pre-hypertensive and should adopt lifestyle and dietary changes. At 140/90 and above, you should discuss the risks with your doctor and monitor your blood pressure level regularly. High blood pressure is especially likely to cause kidney damage when associated with other factors like diabetes, high cholesterol and cardiovascular diseases.
4. Eat healthy and keep your weight in check as this can help prevent diabetes, heart disease and other conditions associated with chronic kidney disease. Reduce your salt intake. The recommended sodium intake is 5-6 grams of salt per day (around a teaspoon). In order to reduce your salt intake, try and limit the amount of processed and restaurant food and do not add salt to food. It will be easier to control your intake if you prepare the food yourself with fresh ingredients.
5. Maintain a healthy fluid intake: Traditional wisdom has long suggested drinking 1.5 to 2 liters of water per day. Consuming plenty of fluid helps the kidneys clear sodium, urea and toxins from the body which, in turn, results in a ‘significantly lower risk’ of developing chronic kidney disease. But do not advocate ‘aggressive fluid loading’, which can cause side effects.
6. Do not smoke as it slows the flow of blood to the kidneys. Smoking also increases the risk of kidney cancer by about 50 percent.
7. Do not take over-the-counter pills on a regular basis: drugs like ibuprofen are known to cause kidney damage and disease if taken regularly.
8. Get the kidney function checked if you have one or more of the 'high risk' factors.

(Note: The article was first published in the Lokayat magazine: April, 2013)

Prevent Stress From Anti-Virus Softwares

Use Anti-virus Softwares

To Prevent Stress

Reports Vinod Varshney

Diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep-less nights, heart diseases, joint pains, irritability, aggresion, lack of concentration, hair fall, early greying of hairs and many more such curses are outcome of every day stress. But all will say that in today’s competitive world there is no escape in everyday life from stress.

Medicines and psycho-therapy may not relieve you from stress as much as time-tested spiritual solutions, which have capacity to alter your behavior, the way you think, speak and conduct.

Many solution were suggested in a two-day workshop on “Preventing Stress” organized by Heart Care Foundation of India and Brahma Kumaris, at Om Shanti Retreat Centre, Manesar

Dr K.K. Agrawal, President Heart Care Foundation of India, gave an analogy comparing human body with computer. He asserted that one had to keep the body, which was like a computer, free from viruses like perverted sexual thoughts, envy, anger, greed, attachment and ego.

Human Computer Needs Protection From Viruses

“Just as an electronic computer runs on an operating system like “windows”, human body also works on an operating system called soul. Human mind is like Microsoft’s “word” which records feelings and emotions while intellect is like “excel”, yet another software program which quickly analyses and calculates”

Body functions well so long as there is no attack of viruses on the soul which is divine and pure. Once there is some attack of a virus, stress occurs and anxiety, anger and depression follow. The solution is -- protect yourself from soul damaging viruses, with the help of a robust anti-virus software like Norton, suggests Dr Agrawal.

If your mind is already infected with viruses then clean your mind up with anti-virus spiritual softwares. Dr Agrawal described in detail some half a dozen efficacious softwares from “Bhagvad Gita”, “Sahaj Yog”, “Gayatri Mantra” to “Alopathic Pranayam”among others.

Bhastrika Pranayam Can Cause Death

He warned against Bhastrika Pranayam, made immensely popular in the country by Baba Ramdev. He cautioned that Bhastrika Pranayam should be practiced by persons older than 40 years only in the supervision of an expert. There have been deaths also because of Bhastrika Pranayam, says cardiologist Dr Agrawal.

“After your mind is cleaned up with anti-virus softwares, then you need to reformat your computer by meditation.” Meditation techniques were explained and instant training was given during the workshop.

Defending his spiritual prescriptions to prevent stress, he averred that allopathy (modern system of medicine) was in any way not against spiritualism.