Alcohol and Your Kidneys National Kidney Foundation

Alcohol can induce abnormally high phosphate levels (i.e., hyperphosphatemia) as well as abnormally low levels. Alcohol consumption apparently leads to excessive phosphate levels by altering muscle cell integrity and causing the muscle cells to release phosphate. This transfer of phosphate out of muscle cells and into the bloodstream results in an increased amount of phosphate passing through the kidneys’ filtering system. In response, reabsorption of phosphate diminishes and excretion in urine increases in an effort to return blood levels of this ion to normal. Another potential cause of hypophosphatemia in alcoholic patients is hyperventilation, which can occur during alcohol withdrawal.

Special Benefits and Confounding Factors of Alcohol Consumption

kidneys and drinking alcohol

Chronic alcohol consumption may cause both fluid and solutes to accumulate, thereby increasing the overall volume of body fluids. In turn, such expansion of body fluid volume can contribute to high blood pressure, a condition often seen among chronic alcoholic patients. One of the main functions of the kidneys is to regulate both the volume and the composition of body fluid, including electrically charged particles (i.e., ions), how does alcohol affect the kidneys such as sodium, potassium, and chloride ions (i.e., electrolytes). However, alcohol’s ability to increase urine volume (i.e., its diuretic effect) alters the body’s fluid level (i.e., hydration state) and produces disturbances in electrolyte concentrations. These effects vary depending on factors such as the amount and duration of drinking, the presence of other diseases, and the drinker’s nutritional status (see table, p. 90).

Can I still have an occasional drink if I have kidney cancer?

  • Alcohol can induce abnormally high phosphate levels (i.e., hyperphosphatemia) as well as abnormally low levels.
  • You can have a sports drink that has electrolytes and a carbohydrate solution.
  • Na+-K+-ATPase present on the proximal tubular epithelial membrane is important for tubular reabsorption.
  • If you’re able to drink alcohol safely, your healthcare team will advise you on the types and amounts that are right for you.

Nevertheless, before rats received large doses of ethanol in their drinking water, they had a 3-week transition period with low concentrations of ethanol [37]. We think that the enhancement of CAT activities may not come from high concentration of ethanol, but rather from the compensatory improvement of antioxidant capacity after the intervention with low-concentration ethanol in the early stage. In the kidneys, ROS is generated via both enzymatic and non-enzymatic processes [22,23,27,32,36,37]. In addition, Das et al. reported that alcohol consumption impairs the ability of CAT to catalyze the decomposition of H2O2 in the kidneys [41].

Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease – NIDDK – National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease – NIDDK.

Posted: Wed, 11 Jan 2017 20:43:24 GMT [source]

Sexual relationship in kidney failure for men

The body mainly metabolizes alcohol using the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, which is expressed primarily in the liver. However, during chronic ethanol consumption, the body also uses CYP2E1 in the liver as well as the kidneys. Interestingly, studies find that CYP2E1 induction is much more robust in the kidneys compared with the liver (Roberts et al. 1994; Zerilli et al. 1995). This massive induction of CYP2E1 in the kidneys results in oxidative stress that modifies phospholipids in cell membranes.

kidneys and drinking alcohol

Alcohol Consumption Can be a “Double-Edged Sword” for Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

However, recent studies have demonstrated that its activity is decreased by ROS and lipid peroxidation with the consumption of ethyl alcohol [22,41,52]. However, the effect of ethanol on renal tubule function is not limited to sodium ions. Diuresis by inhibiting vasopressin release [53] and impairing acid secretion have also been discovered in alcoholics. In addition, hypokalemia, hyponatremia, hypomagnesemia, hypocalcemia, hypophosphatemia, and metabolic acidosis mixed with volume-contracted metabolic alkalosis are common in long-term alcohol consumption.

  • Healthy kidneys are vital to the function of all the body’s organs and systems.
  • 100% of your donation will go directly to kidney patients in Houston affected by the flooding.
  • The AI for fluid is 2.7L/day (91 fluid ounces, or about 11 cups) for women and 3.7L/day for men (125 fluid ounces, or about 15 cups).
  • Women and children are also more susceptible to hyponatremia because of their smaller body size.

Kidney Structure and Function

How kidneys recover from alcohol damage