Fresh Insights
by Dr. Patrica Rupert D.C. L.Ac
“My viewpoint is that doctors should be here to educate you, to examine you, to treat you, to help you make some of the most important decisions you will ever make about your health and your well-being.” - Dr. Rupert
Protect your Kidneys©
by Dr. Patricia Rupert D.C., L.Ac.
02-08-2025
Kidney disease is at epidemic levels. Kidney Dialysis centers are overwhelmed. There is a shortage of healthy human kidneys available for transplant—a 3 to 5 year wait.
To meet the growing demand for fully functioning kidneys, medical trials using genetically modified pig kidneys for transplant into humans, has recently been in the news.
Low vitamin D levels can be an indicator that your kidneys are in distress. Low vitamin D levels can be an indicator that your kidneys are crying out for help, long before any other lab tests indicate an actual kidney problem. Think of low vitamin D levels as the canary in the coal mine. Low vitamin D levels are a symptom, not a disease.
So don’t just absent-mindedly pop a vitamin D supplement when lab results come back showing you have low vitamin D levels. Be proactive. Take the next step. Look for potential sources in your environment, in your diet, in your medication regimen that are lowering your Vitamin D levels and silently harming your kidneys.
Remember, body organs do not work in isolation. Our bodies are made up of systems that work together to keep us healthy. Throwing a single vitamin at an issue, just like throwing a single pharmaceutical at an issue is a band-aid approach and a bad idea. While this approach can raise the vitamin D levels on your next lab report (Basically what you’re treating is your lab result.), the underlying sources causing the low vitamin D issue continues to smolder and will eventually show up within another body system dysfunction.
Below is a list of some of the items that can be very problematic for your kidneys and coincidently also lower vitamin D levels:
Statin drugs (certain statins are less destructive to the kidneys than others.)
Antibiotics.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) examples--Ibuprofen, aspirin (there are many others).
Proton -pump inhibitors examples Prilosec, Nexium (there are many others).
High sugar intake.
High blood pressure.
Blood pressure medications.
Smoke (cigarettes, marijuana, fires).
Diuretics.
Herbicides, insecticides, organophosphates, glyphosate.
Caffeine (I really hate to list this one).
Basically, anything that messes with your vitamin D levels, messes with your kidneys.