For many ordinary people, the physical examination report is not easy to understand. Some are clearly written in red, and the doctor says it is fine. Feeling overwhelmed with my own report.

So, what data is normal for kidney function? If the data of kidney function is abnormal, does it mean that I have kidney disease and even need dialysis?

If you want to know, follow me here to find out the key indicators of renal function.

What is a kidney function test? 4 major indicators to help you understand kidney function

Generally speaking, renal function tests include urea, creatinine, uric acid, urine protein, glomerular filtration rate, etc., which are also different according to different medical institutions. However, the three indicators of urea, creatinine and uric acid are commonly used indicators. With the addition of urine protein, you can basically understand the quality of kidney health. Let’s get to know it together:

Urea

Urea is a product of protein metabolism, the normal value is 3.2-7.1μmol/L, and some institutions have a larger range of 1.7-8.3μmol/L , depending on the situation of the hospital, although urea sometimes exceeds the standard, it does not mean that there is kidney disease, because If the protein intake is too much, the use of steroid drugs may also lead to the instability of the value, which needs to be combined with other indicators to make a comprehensive judgment.

Creatinine

When muscle tissue breaks down metabolites due to injury, creatinine is generated. The normal value of creatinine is usually between 53-97 μmol/L, and it may be higher in men.

Creatinine is often different due to muscle mass. For example, the creatinine metabolism of the elderly is significantly lower than that of people who exercise. In addition, in the early stage of kidney disease, the increase of creatinine is not obvious, so it is not accurate to use creatinine as an indicator to determine the situation of kidney disease.

However, once the creatinine is significantly increased, it means that the kidney damage is more serious. Some people will ask how much the creatinine exceeds the need for dialysis. This is not necessarily. It depends on the individual situation. Although some people have high creatinine, they do not have a particularly serious problem. Dialysis, and some people may have a creatinine of more than 200, but the accumulation of toxins in the body requires dialysis as soon as possible.

uric acid

Uric acid is the product of purine metabolism in the human body and needs to be excreted through the kidneys, so the kidney function can also be understood by measuring the amount of uric acid in the blood.

The value of uric acid varies greatly between men and women. Men are generally 150-440 μmol/L, and women are generally 95-360 μmol/L. High uric acid may indicate kidney disease, gout, or even malignant tumors.

Urine protein

The first three tests are blood, and urine protein is urine, so urine protein is generally reflected in the urine test, but because most of the protein in normal human blood will be filtered by the kidneys and then absorbed, the content in urine is very small, so urine Too much protein in the fluid is most likely a sign of kidney problems.

Urine protein detection of renal function is more sensitive than indicators such as creatinine, and can obtain kidney status earlier.

The normal value of urine protein should be less than 150mg. If there is abnormality, 24-hour urine protein quantification can be performed, which can more accurately understand the renal function damage.

Now there are urine protein test strips that can be screened at home. Usually, you can test more and go to the hospital if you find any abnormality.

In addition to the above 4 items, there may be indicators of glomerular filtration rate in the physical examination reports of some hospitals, which are generally estimated by data such as creatinine. The normal value of the glomerular filtration rate of general healthy young people is about 110-120 between.

How to improve kidney function?

If you want to improve the condition of poor renal function, you must first understand the condition and pass the renal function test before you can arrange further treatment. The main purpose is to let patients with different stages of chronic kidney disease establish correct dietary concepts and actually implement them. If it is inconvenient to carry out a kidney disease diet in work or life, or if you have a poor appetite, you can also choose appropriate nutritional supplements for kidney disease in a timely manner.

1. Regularly check kidney function

It is recommended that people who have never arranged for a health check should undergo at least one check-up to discover their health and potential crises in time.

In addition to regular physical examinations, if you suspect that you have kidney disease and have symptoms such as suspected proteinuria, polyuria, loss of appetite, edema, and high blood pressure, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible to reduce the risk of the disease developing into uremia.

2. Poor kidney function can be improved from diet

People with poor kidney function should pay special attention to their diet, especially the intake of protein and phosphorus, sodium and potassium.

When renal function is damaged, the metabolism of phosphorus and potassium will deteriorate. If blood phosphorus is too high, it is easy to stimulate parathyroid hyperplasia, affecting systemic vascular calcification, renal bone disease, etc.; high blood potassium is easy to cause heart rhythm Uneven, and serum sodium is often associated with hypertension and edema.

The following are the principles of dietary intake for patients with kidney disease:

Gluten, nuts, beans (not soy) are foods high in phosphorus and low in biological value protein and should be avoided as much as possible. Although dairy products are high biological value proteins, they are still high phosphorus foods.

Patients with kidney disease should avoid eating starfruit and vegetable soup, because these two have extremely high potassium content, and starfruit also has neurotoxins that cannot be metabolized by patients with kidney disease, and they should be especially careful.

Douban sauce, chili sauce, sand tea sauce and other seasonings with high sodium content should also be avoided, and low-sodium salt should not be selected when cooking, so as to avoid the risk of hyperkalemia and other disease factors.

As each patient’s situation is different, the recommended intake or normal value of low sodium, phosphorus and potassium is not necessarily the same. For example, potassium is usually limited only when the urine volume is less than 1 liter or when there is high blood potassium. Limiting intake, but too little may also cause loss of appetite and insufficient caloric intake, so it is recommended to consult with a doctor and a nutritionist to discuss a suitable dietary plan for the patient.

3. Selection principles of nutritional supplements for kidney disease

For patients in the middle and late stages of kidney disease, it is a big challenge to maintain a low-protein diet for a long time without taking too much seasoning. On the contrary, it is easy to affect the appetite, resulting in insufficient calorie intake, and insufficient total calorie intake can easily lead to renal function. accelerated deterioration.

Most kidney nutrition products can meet the basic needs of kidney patients for concentrated high-calorie, moderate protein, and low sodium, phosphorus and potassium, but there are still some nutritional products that can provide additional health care needs.

Choose low GI, oligosaccharide, Omega-3 fatty acid supplements

Kidney patients with diabetes should choose low GI foods, that is, low glycemic index foods, to reduce the rapid fluctuation of blood sugar, but brown rice, whole wheat bread and other foods, although they are low GI diets, contain high phosphorus, which is not conducive to kidney disease.

If you are afraid of eating wrong, low GI kidney supplements can be said to be a relatively simple choice. Studies have also found that kidney patients often have constipation problems, because it is easy to cause the large intestine mucosa to absorb toxins and increase the metabolic burden on the kidneys. Therefore, patients can also supplement probiotics, or add oligosaccharide supplements to help regulate the intestinal tract. Function.

In addition, studies have pointed out that supplementing fish oil and canola oil can improve skin itching in dialysis patients, and Omega-3 fatty acids are also one of the essential fatty acids in the body. They not only help prevent cardiovascular disease and reduce proteinuria, but also enable patients to supplement fat. Increase high caloric needs.

It is recommended that kidney friends can cook with canola oil, olive oil, or obtain it from nutritional supplements with additional Omega-3 fatty acids.

However, it should be noted that patients with chronic kidney disease choose special nutritional products, and it is possible that one serving contains all the nutrients. If the patient can eat normal food at this time, it needs to be converted, so as to avoid excessive intake of nutrients. kidney function.