About your body
The Kidneys
We have two kidneys, one on either side of the spine, beneath the lower ribs.
The main job of the kidneys is to remove waste from the blood and return the cleaned blood back to the body. Kidney failure means the kidneys are no longer able to remove waste and maintain the level of fluid and salts that the body needs.
Your kidneys clean about one litre of blood every minute. Each minute about one litre of blood – one-fifth of all the blood pumped by the heart – enters the kidneys through the renal arteries. After the blood is cleaned, it flows back into the body through the renal veins.
As your blood is filtered, waste and other fluids are filtered out. Most of this fluid is returned to your blood and the waste products are passed out of your body as urine (wee).
The kidneys can be damaged over time from poor diet, not drinking enough water and not exercising. 20-30% of people with diabetes develop kidney disease. So it is important to eat healthy food, drink lots of water, and exercise from an early age. Your kidneys are as important to your health as your heart or lungs.