Kidney Disease and Kidney Failure Help
Kidney disease is a chronic condition affecting an estimated 31 million Americans and is the 9th leading cause of death. Allopathic medicine tells us the kidneys cannot be healed. Naturopaths have observed different results. Bringing any healing will be a journey, but there is always hope. Even nephrologists (allopaths specializing in the kidneys) will tell you they’ve seen people in kidney failure have the kidneys start working even months or years later.
What do the kidneys do?
The kidneys play a vital role in filtering and removing debris from the body. If the urine has debris, the blood does too. Why? Because the kidneys filter the blood to produce the urine. Think about a sieve or colander. They allow water to pass through but hold on to the pasta or vegetables you’re draining. However, smaller particles can pass through. It is a simplified view of the kidneys and the millions of nephrons in the kidneys that do the work.
The kidneys help the body regulate minerals like sodium, potassium, phosphorus, and chlorine. The kidneys also produce and help the flow of several hormones (aldosterone, ADH, calcitriol, erythropoietin, PTH) through the body. The kidneys don’t just produce urine, they cleanse the watery, electrolyte-containing part of the blood called plasma.
The kidneys also help to regulate blood volume and pressure. If you have high or low blood pressure, it is very important to check the kidneys and address any issues. Commonly, healthy people produce 1-2 liters of urine daily; however, this can vary based on circumstances like fluid intake.
The kidneys regulate the pH in the blood by excreting excess hydrogen (H+) ions. Recall, pH is the power of or potential/presence for hydrogen (the p is disputed in science). In simple terms, the more H+, the more acidic and the more OH-, the more alkaline. The body maintains a careful balance of pH throughout its systems. In fact, the blood pH must be between 7.35 and 7.45 (meaning it is slightly alkaline when compared to neutral which is pure water at 7). If your blood goes outside this range, you will die.
Common Symptoms in Kidney Conditions
- High blood pressure
- Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite
- Sleep issues
- Muscle twitches and cramps
- Swelling (especially feet and ankles)
- Changes in urine volume
- Waste Buildup: weakness, shortness of breath, confusion, swelling, and lethargy
- Excess potassium: abnormal heart rhythms
- Dark circles under the eyes or swelling under the eyes
- Loss of hair left and right of the center of the forehead
- Whiteness in finger and toe nails
Natural Ideas
Foods
- Consider a raw diet (75% raw foods)
- Eggs
- Kidneys (pig, sheep, deer)
- Cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower)
- Garlic
- Onions
- Apples
- Cranberries and other berries
- Cherries
- Red grapes
- Caution: Watch intake of watermelon (especially the seeds), and parsley. Do not do these daily and do not use more than 2 weeks without taking 4 weeks off.
- AVOIDS: excess mineral salt, potassium chloride, salt substitutes, chocolate, cocoa, rhubarb, tea, spinach, rutabaga, sucralose and other fake sugars, GMOS (especially corn), irradiated foods, dairy (except goat), beet greens, swiss chard, excess protein consumption, antacids, NSAIDs, unsupervised fasting
Natural Therapies
- Craniosacral Therapy
- Reflexology
- Energy Work
- Meridian Tracing
- Color Therapy
- Emotional Release
- Meditation and visualization
Other Help
- Work through fear. This is vital as the negative emotion of the kidney is fear. You cannot have kidney conditions without chronic fear.
- Feng Shui
- Drink 6-10 ounces of water every waking hour
- Essential oil compress: use 1 drop rosemary, sage, and juniper in 1 tsp of carrier oil applied over the kidneys with a warm, moist towel over for about 15 minutes
- Cell salts: Nat Mur, Nat Phos, Nat Sulph, Calc Sulph
In the end, kidney conditions are a symptom of a larger problem in the body–the body has gone badly out of balance and needs to be brought back into harmony. It is time to consider your health situation as a whole and address your overall well being as well as working to heal the kidneys themselves.
Please don’t hesitate to schedule an appointment if you need further assistance.
Also, let me know if you have any requests for natural suggestions for other conditions!
NOTE:
Everything here is for information only. This is not meant to treat or diagnose any medical condition. Seek a qualified medical professional.