World Kidney Day 2021: Here's How Drinking Alcohol Affects Your Kidneys

World Kidney Day is celebrated on the second Thursday of every March. With the objective of raising awareness of the importance of kidney health, this campaign also aims to highlight the risk factors that could lead to chronic kidney disease (CKD).

The kidney's main roles in the human body are to remove waste products by filtering the blood, regulate blood pressure and produce a hormone called erythropoietin that stimulates production and maintenance of red blood cells. With the continuous rise of alcohol dependence or abuse, however, more and more people are now being diagnosed with kidney problems.

The 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) found that 85.6% of Americans aged 18 and older reported that they drank alcohol at some point in their lifetime. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about two out of three Americans drink alcohol, per the National Kidney Foundation.

It describes one drink as equal to one 12–ounce bottle of beer, one glass of wine or one ounce (one shot) of hard liquor.

Although drinking alcohol is not in itself considered unhealthy, binge drinking can cause a number of complications, such as acute kidney failure, and increases the likelihood of developing CKD. Per the CDC, binge drinking happens when "men consume five or more drinks or women consume four or more drinks in about two hours."

Regularly drinking too much has also been found to "double" the risk of chronic kidney disease, though the damage appears more slowly.

The risk gets even higher for those who also smoke. The CDC has found that heavy drinkers who also smoke are five times more likely to develop CKD than people who do not smoke or drink alcohol to excess.

Aside from CKD, alcohol affects one's kidneys in many other ways, such as increasing one's risk of high blood pressure. High blood pressure is a common cause of kidney disease, and drinking more than two drinks a day can increase one's chance of developing the condition.

As part of its main function, the kidney is responsible for filtering harmful substances, including alcohol. Alcohol, however, causes changes in the function of the kidneys and can decrease their ability to filter out harmful substances, including the alcohol itself.

Alcohol is also known to dehydrate the body, thereby affecting the normal function of cells and organs, including the kidneys.

Kidney damage can lead to several other health complications, including anemia, chronic fatigue, seizures, damaged immune system, bone weakness and sexual dysfunction.

Although World Kidney Day is not considered an official holiday, various health groups, educators and advocates still organize outreach drives, workshops and conferences on this day to raise more awareness on the importance of a healthy lifestyle.