Bad habits of office workers are harmful to the kidneys

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Article written by: MSc Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy, Endocrinologist - Dialysis - Kidney Transplant, Vinmec Central Park International General Hospital

The urinary system consists of 2 kidneys located behind the 2 sides of the back and the urinary system includes 2 ureters, 1 bladder and urethra. The kidneys are not only responsible for filtering waste products (urea toxins) from the body's metabolism, but also helping to remove excess salt and water, regulating blood pressure (kidney failure causes blood pressure to increase), balancing the state of health. the body's acid-base balance (kidney failure will cause acidemia), secreting hematopoietic stimulating factors (kidney failure will cause anemia), maintaining bone health by producing vitamin D... Therefore, say no more The kidney is one of the most important organs of the body.
Subjects at risk of chronic kidney disease include patients with diabetes, hypertension, people over 60 years old, family members with kidney disease. When the kidneys fail, it usually affects both kidneys. Therefore, these subjects should be screened for kidney disease periodically by both blood and urine tests.

1. What habits of office workers are not good for the kidneys?

Office workers have a habit of drinking less water and holding in urine when they have to, often due to continuous work. This bad habit easily leads to the risk of kidney stones and urinary tract infections. Drinking less water, less urine is formed, urine flow is not enough to push waste and bacteria out of the urinary system, leading to kidney stones and UTIs. Especially, some people just drink water to urinate, so they don't like drinking water even more. Besides, they also have other habits such as eating salty, high cholesterol, high protein, less green vegetables which are also not good for kidney health. Smoking, drinking a lot of alcohol and not exercising are also some of the risk factors for kidney disease.

2. When the kidneys have problems from these habits, what complications can there be? How to treat these diseases, how to prevent them?

Kidney stones
According to statistics, 1 in 10 people will have kidney stones during their life. Men are affected more often than women. People with diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity have a higher risk of kidney stones than other subjects.

A kidney stone is a hard object formed from waste products in the urine. Urine contains dissolved wastes, if in the environment there is too little water but a lot of waste, crystals will form. Crystals will connect with other substances and form stones, which gradually get bigger. Sometimes stones follow the urine stream out, causing acute renal colic. The kidneys filter these waste products, if there is not enough water to flush them out, stones will form. The chemical composition of common stones is calcium, oxalate, urate, cystine, xanthine, and phosphate. Risk factors for kidney stones are drinking too little water, being physically active (too much), being overweight, and eating too salty or too sweet. Urinary tract infections and a family history of kidney stones are also important risk factors in some people. Eating too many foods containing fructose also increases the risk of kidney stone formation.
The size of kidney stones is very variable, sometimes as small as a grain of sand, sometimes as large as a pebble, even as big as a golf ball. In general, the larger the stone size, the more symptoms the patient has.
Back pain (1 or 2 sides) Pain such as cramping or stomach pain, which does not improve after taking medicine Blood in urine Nausea or vomiting Fever, chills Bad-smelling and cloudy urine (if infection is present) urine) A kidney stone starts to cause pain if it moves in the urinary tract or causes a blockage in the passage. Intense pain intensity. In rare cases, kidney stones pass without causing pain or damage. If you have pain and pass a stone, you need to bring it to your doctor to analyze the composition of the stone and have appropriate treatment, prevent recurrence. Kidney stones increase the risk of chronic kidney disease. If you have 1 stone, you have a 50% chance of forming another stone in the future 5-7 years. Complications of kidney stones related to stones causing obstruction: Urinary tract infections, kidney abscesses, which can lead to septic shock, life-threatening. Obstructive kidney stones cause the kidneys to gradually increase water retention, if not intervened to clear the blockage will lead to kidney failure and loss of kidney function. Any kidney stone, blocked will be affected. In both cases, both kidneys are affected at the same time. Drinking enough water will help your urine to be diluted with waste products. Dark urine indicates concentrated, urine will be light yellow if the body is sufficiently hydrated. Drinking water will be better than soda, water containing sugar, coffee / tea. Most people with kidney stones need to drink more than 12 glasses of water a day (about 3 liters). If you're physically active or it's hot outside, you need to drink more. Sugar and fructose-rich products should be limited in use. Eating fruits and vegetables will make the urine less acidic, making it difficult for stones to form. Animal protein makes urine more acidic, increasing the risk of stone formation. Reducing salt intake also helps reduce stone formation, which is found in canned foods, fast foods or when you eat out. If you are overweight or obese, you need to lose weight to your ideal weight. Weight loss diets are often fortified with animal protein, which increases the risk of stone formation. Therefore, you need to use balanced foods, it is best to consult a nutritionist.
Urinary tract infections
Unlike common kidney stones in men, urinary tract infections, especially cystitis, are common in women. 1 in 5 women will get a UTI once in their lifetime. Nearly 20% of women who have had one experience will have it again, and nearly 30% of women with a second infection will have another relapse, and eventually 80% of these women will have a recurrent UTI. The reason women are more susceptible to UTIs than men is because the female urethra is shorter, and bacteria can more easily access the bladder than men. In addition, women with gynecological infections are also likely to cause UTIs because the women's urinary tract and vagina are close together. Risk factors for UTIs include diabetes and, in men, an enlarged prostate gland.

Symptoms of a UTI include an urgent need to urinate, burning when urinating, pain above the pubic bone, cloudy, bloody, or very dark urine. If left untreated, the infection will spread to the kidneys, leading to more serious problems such as pyelonephritis, sepsis, and septic shock.
To prevent UTIs, you need to drink enough water during the day as recommended, do not hold your urine when you have to, and finish urinating before going to bed. For women, it is necessary to wipe from front to back after using the toilet to prevent bacterial infection from the anus, clean the genital area every day and before and after sex. The cases of bladder irritation (mainly due to stress), frequent urination need to adjust to work, reduce stress and consult a doctor if it does not improve. Avoid being afraid to urinate without drinking enough water.
When you have a UTI, you need to see your doctor for a urinalysis and other tests as indicated. When taking antibiotics to treat UTIs, you also need to drink more water than usual to ensure continuous urine production to eliminate bacteria, avoid holding urine, avoid being afraid to urinate but drinking less water.

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