7 Early Warning Signs Your Kidneys Are Failing (Doctor Explains)

Video Description

7 Early Warning Signs Your Kidneys Are Struggling | Longevity, Organ Aging, Kidney Health & Disease Prevention Kidney disease develops silently over years, and by the time symptoms become obvious, irreversible damage has often already occurred. From a longevity and healthy ageing perspective, preserving kidney function is one of the most important yet overlooked foundations of long-term health, lifespan, and metabolic resilience. Your kidneys filter around 200 litres of blood per day, regulate electrolytes, control fluid balance, produce hormones, and remove metabolic waste. When this system starts to fail, subtle changes appear long before dialysis or transplant ever enter the picture. As an emergency medicine doctor, I’ve repeatedly seen patients arrive in kidney failure whose early warning signs were present for months or years, but never recognised. In this video, I break down seven early warning signs that your kidneys are struggling, explain the underlying physiology behind each one, and show you how to tell normal variations from true red flags. Because early detection can dramatically slow chronic kidney disease progression. Late detection usually means crisis management. You’ll learn: -What foamy urine really indicates (proteinuria and glomerular damage) -Why ankle swelling and puffy eyes suggest fluid and albumin imbalance -How kidney disease causes fatigue through reduced erythropoietin and anaemia -Why waking at night to urinate can signal loss of urine concentrating ability -How electrolyte disturbances trigger muscle cramps -Why persistent itching can come from toxin buildup (uremic pruritus) -How kidney dysfunction accelerates biological aging We’ll also cover major risk factors including diabetes, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and family history, plus which simple blood and urine tests can detect early kidney damage. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 – Why Kidney Health Matters for Longevity 02:20 – What Your Urine Foam Is Telling You 04:39 – Why Your Ankles Are Swelling 06:50 – The Fatigue That Doesn’t Make Sense 09:16 – The Nighttime Bathroom Trips (Nocturia) 11:33 – When Your Eyes Look Swollen 13:34 – The Muscle Cramps Nobody Can Explain 15:34 – The Itch That Won’t Go Away 17:47 – How to Interpret These Signs Together #dralex #doctoralex #kidneyhealth #longevity #chronickidneydisease #preventivemedicine #metabolichealth