Natural Remedies for KIDNEY DISEASE Symptoms
Today we talk about the natural remedies that actually work to alleviate the symptoms of kidney disease.
The life of a kidney disease patient would be a lot easier, if they didn’t have to constantly struggle with problems such as swelling, pruritus and nausea, and all this while being constantly tired due to anemia.
The good news is that there are some incredibly powerful natural remedies not many people know about that can help.
And now the best part: these are not just palliative treatments. They can also help you improving your kidney health.
Because Anemia, for example, also accelerates kidney and cardiovascular diseases, ok?
so when you are able to control it you are also going to improve your kidney health.
My name is Katherine by the way, and I’ve been working with people suffering from chronic kidney disease for 7 years.
I’ve helped many of them getting some of their kidney function back.
And if you are new here on 00kidney, welcome to our journey together to a better kidney health!
Don’t forget to subscribe and click the notification bell!
Now, the symptoms for which I’ll show you the best home remedies today are swelling, anemia, nausea and erectile disfunction.
All these common symptoms and complications of kidney disease can be greatly improved with the right remedy.
Now, as you may see here, Youtube has introduced a new feature.
If you take a look at the progress bar, you can see that it has several sections now.
So if you’re interested in the remedies for just one of these symptoms, you can directly jump to that part of the video!
Useful.
Ok, let’s start now!
Swelling or edema.
This is caused by the extra fluid the kidneys cannot remove properly.
In kidney patients, Swelling affects ankle and feet prevalently.
Now, there are two herbal remedies that can greatly help with swelling, thanks to their potent diuretic properties.
Dandelion leaf is one of the most powerful herbal remedy for your kidneys.
How powerful? Let’s just say that In French, dandelion is known as pissenlit… a colorful description of its diuretic activity.
Dandelion has other Kidney Benefits too:
It May Help Prevent Urinary Tract Infections
It may help treating high blood pressure
It also has anti diabetic properties.
But most important,
Research has found that one of the plant’s compounds enhances kidney activity and increases the frequency of urination.
How to get these benefits?
Try dandelion in a tea:
If your garden is already flooded with dandelions, you don’t need to rely on store-bought tea
But make sure you or someone else hasn’t treated your lawn with chemicals, dandelions can absorb them from the soil.
So get the flowers and Leaves, Wash them and then let steep in hot water for 15-20 minutes.
And if you don’t have dandelions in your garden you can buy the dried leaves from amazon or from your favorite herbalist’s shop.
The other herbal remedy than can help with swelling is
Horsetail, or Equisetum arvense
It’s an adaptogenic herb, a potent remedy that was used to treat kidney problems since the times of the ancient romans.
A 2014 study found that horsetail extract had the same diuretic effects as prescription medications, but with fewer side effects.
Horsetail is not just used to treat fluid retention or edema,
But also kidney and bladder stones, urinary tract infections, the inability to control urination, and general disturbances of the kidney and bladder.
Horsetail may be a good alternative to prescription diuretics, especially if you’ve had problems with side effects.
And this is a benefit of many herbal remedies: herbal products are able to regulate some specific functions in the body without altering what’s already working.
But consider that herbal remedies can interfere with prescription drugs, so talk to your doctor before using any of the treatments I talk about in my videos.
However, side effects are uncommon when diuretics are taken at the right dose.
Now, these two herbs, horsetail and dandelion can be used alone or combined in a tea.
Actually, I’ve made my own kidney detox tea recipe using these two herbs.
I’m leaving a link up here if you want to know more.
Now, there are other things that can help if you want to have a significant result with swelling.
There are compression stockings. Very useful for the advanced stages of kidney disease.
And while you can find Stockings with small amounts of compression at pharmacies without a prescription,
Effective compression stockings apply the greatest amount of pressure at the ankle and gradually decrease the pressure up the leg.
These stockings are available with a prescription by your doctor.
Another thing that can help is resting with your legs elevated.
Leg, ankle, and foot edema can be improved by elevating the legs above heart level for 30 minutes three or four times per day.
Another thing that can help is walking.
Getting your legs moving means circulation is improved which will sweep up that collected fluid and get it shifted.
And remember, if you take a prescription diuretic or use one of the herbal remedies I’ve talked about,
reducing sodium intake can really help.
I’ve talked about sodium several times in my videos because its intake is correlated to high blood pressure.
Just like edema.
Now, I’m not saying that if you have this symptom it’s caused by sodium, because the cause is kidney disease.
But reducing sodium can really help here.
Ok, let’s talk about the next symptom that can be managed with home remedies.
Anemia
It’s the main cause of fatigue, ok? so if you are constantly tired, first of all, get a blood test done to measure your hemoglobin level.
This can tell you if anemia is causing the problem.
Which is likely, because anemia is very, very common in kidney disease patients.
Anemia is more common the more advanced the stage, ok?
Actually, it affects nearly all patients with stage 5 CKD.
But it can appear even in stage 3, especially if you are diabetic.
Now, anemia in kidney patients is caused by lack of erythropoietin or EPO.
It’s treated medically with drugs called erythropoiesis stimulating agents (ESAs) and iron supplements.
But there are several things you can do to avoid being too dependent on medications.
First of all,
supplement L-Carnitine
this carrier molecule is great to improve anemia.
Actually, Blood tests should be done for l carnitine deficiency when CKD is present.
Because the lack of l-carnitine can cause several issues.
Correction of this deficiency will not only ease anemia and give you more energy, it can also help with depression, improve cognitive function, and quality of life.
If you need L-carnitine, you can begin taking 500 to 1500mg per day and increase your dose based on blood work results.
And also vitamin B12 & Folic Acid can help.
Low or deficient numbers of these two B-vitamins will contribute to anemia.
Now, you may be tempted to just get a multivitamin but that wouldn’t be safe if you have kidney disease.
Some vitamins can accumulate when not properly removed by your kidneys.
But now you can also find renal vitamins, specially made for the needs of people with kidney disease.
This could be helpful with anemia because following a renal diet means limiting or avoiding a lot of healthy foods.
And you may risk being too low on some vitamins.
People with CKD have greater requirements for some water-soluble vitamins.
These include B Complex vitamins.
B complex vitamins are grouped together, but each has a different job to do.
One of the important functions of vitamin B12 and folic acid is to work together with iron to prevent anemia.
Now, the other water soluble vitamin you need to fight anemia is Vitamin C.
But it’s best if you can get this one mostly from food, let’s see why.
A diet plan for anemia needs to include a healthful balance of iron-rich foods, such as leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, and foods that can improve the body’s absorption of iron, ok?
Now, some iron rich foods also suitable for a renal diet include
Kale, green beans, broccoli, and more.
When you eat these foods, ideally you should also eat some vitamin C rich foods such as
Lemons, oranges, red peppers and so on.
Consider that there are some greens present in both these lists, ok?
Like kale, broccoli and swiss chard.
These are good sources of both iron and vitamin C, great for the health of your kidneys.
Another thing to consider is cooking in a cast-iron skillet.
Foods cooked in cast iron absorb iron from the skillet.
Now, the diet for anemia is a very big topic and it would require a full video in my opinion to explain it.
I’m not going too in depth today because this video is about the natural remedies for the symptoms of kidney disease and there are other symptoms and remedies I want to show you.
But… let me know in comment section, let me know if you want more info about the diet for anemia, Ok?
I could make a video about it.
Let me know!
Ok guys, another symptom that can have a big impact on the quality of life of a kidney disease patient is
nausea.
Nausea is not just a discomfort; it can impact your nutritional status, ok?
and this is important because your kidneys need to be nourished properly if you want them to improve.
Now, nausea happens usually for different reasons in kidney patients.
Most common is uremia, a build-up of wastes in the blood.
But it can also be triggered by dietary restrictions and even the prescription drugs the patient may be taking.
For example, many phosphate binders are known to cause nausea.
In this case, the best option would be to talk with your doctor and maybe to try a different brand or a lower dose.
So, my advice here would be to find what’s causing the problem before anything else.
Now, there are two things that can really help with nausea.
Ginger is an incredibly powerful home remedy.
It won’t just treat many forms of nausea; it also has several other benefits.
- Ginger can be helpful in reducing muscle pain and soreness, ok?
- and also, Its anti-inflammatory content can help with the inflammation associated with kidney disease. Great to improve your kidney function.
- Now, Ginger can even reduce the risk factors for heart disease.
Actually, there are even studies on kidney disease patients showing that ginger has therapeutic effects in improving renal function.
This is because Ginger is loaded with bioactive compounds and nutrients that are helpful for our brain and body.
Ginger contains gingerol, a substance with powerful medicinal properties.
You can get it in tea or tablet form but for me the best option is getting it fresh.
Fresh Ginger is usually available in the produce island of many supermarkets. It’s also pretty inexpensive, actually.
Now, you can use fresh ginger in several ways.
you can incorporate ginger in your cooking, you can just eat it in small pieces or you can put it in a smoothie.
Now, the other natural remedy that can help are probiotics
Probiotics have benefits that go far beyond alleviating nausea.
They have a lot of benefits, actually, as you can see here in my slide.
And they are also great to relieve an upset stomach, especially if caused by gut problems.
Now, I’ve talked extensively about probiotics in this video up here, because they’re really helpful.
So, if you want to know more about probiotics, watch it now or save it for later.
Ok, the next part is especially interesting for men.
Erectile dysfunction is a common condition for people with kidney disease and for people with cardiovascular problems.
There are several things that can cause it, including heart problems, high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure and stress.
All these are very common in kidney disease so it’s easy to understand why many men with kidney disease have this problem.
But there are remedies that can help:
First there’s Panax ginseng
Panax ginseng is a very powerful remedy and it has solid research behind it.
Researchers reviewed seven studies of red ginseng and ED in 2008. Dosages ranged from 600 to 1,000 milligrams (mg) three times daily.
They concluded there was “suggestive evidence for the effectiveness of red ginseng in the treatment of erectile dysfunction.”
Now, the action of Panax ginseng appears to be most effective for those with high lipids in their blood and high blood pressure.
This herb is known to have anti-inflammatory action, improve lung function, and improve blood flow in other diseases – all characteristics that may reduce ED but can also help with kidney disease.
Also consider Rhodiola rosea
One study indicated that Rhodiola rosea may be helpful.
This herb has been shown to improve energy and reduce fatigue.
Dosage ranges between 150 and 200 mg a day for three months.
Subjects of the study experienced substantially improved sexual function.
But more studies are needed to understand action and ensure safety.
One thing that is known to be safe is
L-arginine
L-arginine is an amino acid naturally present in your body.
It helps make nitric oxide. Nitric oxide relaxes blood vessels to help a successful erection, ok?
It’s essential for healthy sexual functioning.
Researchers studied the effects of L-arginine on ED. Thirty-one percent of men with ED taking 5 grams of L-arginine per day experienced significant improvements in sexual function, ok?
Now, when it comes to sexual health, many of the advices helpful with general health are valid too.
Because sexual health is correlated to a healthy cardiovascular system, just like kidney health.
So, keep doing all the things you do to improve your cardiovascular health, like exercising regularly, eating healthy and taking steps to reduce stress.
Another thing that can help is continuing to engage in sexual activities:
Studies found out that Stimulating sexual activities that lead to even partial erections may have a positive impact on ED.
And also remember that some prescription Drugs can CAUSE impotence, alright?
The biggest culprits are the blood pressure medications called beta blockers, such as atenolol, propanolol, metoprolol and bisoprolol.
So don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor if you have this problem.
It’s a common issue for kidney patients and there are medical solutions that work.
For example, Hormone Injections.
Most male kidney patients with sexual problems have low testosterone levels.
This deficiency can be treated by an injection of testosterone.
And then obviously there are several drugs that can be prescribed to treat erectile disfunction.
These can be prescribed safely to kidney disease patients and they work in most of the cases.
So talk to your doctor, if you have this issue.
Now, remember that the herbal remedies and natural remedies of today’s video are usually safe, and in most of the cases they can help both with the symptom and the cause of the problem.
That’s the biggest advantage of herbal medicine.
Still, talk to your doctor before starting anything new, ok? that’s for your own safety.
Now, another thing that can really help you is the program to beat kidney disease.
Many people are using this exact program to improve their kidney function dramatically.
If you’re interested, click here for more info.
This is all for today, thank you for watching and I hope you enjoyed this video.
See you next Friday!
About the Author
Michaelw Hi, my name is Michael and in this blog I'm gonna share the story of how I got off kidney dialysis for good. Getting off dialysis isn't easy at all, and that's why I'm trying to help people as much as I can.
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