Kidney failure lurks in young people: What time does staying up late easily damage the kidneys?

Young people today often have the habit of living 'against their biological clock'. This is silently damaging kidney function - one of the body's most important organs for filtering blood, detoxifying and regulating the internal environment.

What time of night are the kidneys most active?

Doctor Le Nhat Duy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City - Branch 3, said that according to traditional medicine, the body operates according to the principle of "heaven and man unification" - that is, physiological activities are closely linked to the natural biological time of the day. In particular, the kidneys are said to be most active between 5-7 pm (kidney hours according to Canh hour Ty, corresponding to the excretory system and kidney qi recovery).

The habit of sleeping after 11pm of many people today is very harmful to the kidneys in the long run.

PHOTO: AI

In terms of modern physiology, the kidneys still maintain continuous blood filtration 24/7, but the ability to regenerate and restore kidney cells increases dramatically at night, especially from about 11am to 3am the next morning - when the body enters deep sleep stages.

Therefore, staying up past 11 p.m. not only disrupts the kidney cell recovery process, but also disrupts hormones, blood pressure, and circadian rhythms. These factors indirectly damage the kidneys in the long term.

Studies have shown that people who regularly sleep after 11pm and sleep less than 6 hours per night have a higher risk of kidney diseases such as:

• Proteinuria (protein leakage in urine).
• Increased risk of progression to chronic kidney disease (CKD).
• Metabolic disorders of blood pressure and blood sugar - two leading risk factors for kidney failure.

In addition, according to Dr. Nhat Duy, a study published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (USA) showed that people who sleep less than 6 hours/day have a faster rate of decline in glomerular filtration function than the group that sleeps 7-8 hours/day.

Abuse of dietary supplements and pain relievers can also cause acute kidney failure.

PHOTO: AI

Can kidney stones lead to cancer or kidney failure?

“Kidney stones can cause cancer or kidney failure, but this is not common. Specifically, if not treated promptly, kidney stones can lead to pathological conditions such as prolonged urinary tract obstruction, chronic pyelonephritis, kidney tissue damage and reduced filtration function. Kidney stones can turn into chronic kidney failure in the long term,” said Dr. Nhat Duy.

In addition, some studies have also noted that prolonged inflammation and chronic irritation caused by stones can increase the risk of renal cell carcinoma. However, this possibility is still low and depends on many other risk factors.

What tests should be done to detect kidney disease early?

Doctor Nhat Duy said that to understand the status of their kidney function, people can perform some simple tests below:

Blood test: Measure serum creatinine and blood urea, from which the eGFR (glomerular filtration rate) index is calculated - the most important measure to diagnose kidney failure.

Urine test : Evaluate proteinuria, hematuria, detect glomerulonephritis, renal tubular damage.

Ultrasound of urinary system : Detects stones, hydronephrosis, renal cysts, malformations.

For people with underlying diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking, long-term use of anti-inflammatory drugs, etc., they need to have regular kidney examinations every 6-12 months for closer monitoring.

“The kidney is a ‘silent’ organ, so by the time obvious symptoms are detected, the disease is often already advanced. People need to be proactive in disease prevention rather than treatment, especially in an era where unhealthy lifestyles are becoming more common,” Dr. Nhat Duy emphasized.

Some advice from Dr. Nhat Duy to help everyone protect their kidney health better:

Go to bed before 11pm, get 7-8 hours of sleep/day.

Drink enough water and divide it evenly throughout the day, avoid drinking only when thirsty.

Limit the abuse of painkillers, antibiotics, and functional foods of unknown origin. Because these are common causes of acute kidney failure, especially in young people.

Increase exercise and reduce stress, because prolonged stress affects the kidney-nerve-endocrine axis.

Regular health check-ups, especially for high-risk groups such as night shift workers, people with little sleep, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity...

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/suy-than-rinh-rap-nguoi-tre-thuc-khuya-den-may-gio-de-gay-hai-than-185250629231413164.htm