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It’s been established that when a person has kidney disease, one of the big concerns becomes the balance of their electrolytes – that is, the electrically charged elements that move through the blood to help the body perform vital functions. Keeping the calcium and phosphorus balanced in the body becomes especially important, because these two electrolytes play a major role in building bones and teeth, and also in conveying energy throughout the body. So what happens if they do go out of balance? How does this imbalance manifest itself?

 

Diseased kidneys can’t get rid of excess phosphorus, nor can they activate Vitamin D, meaning calcium levels drop. The thyroid triggers more calcium both to bring those levels up and to balance the excess phosphorus. This extra calcium is often leeched from the bones, making them weaker. And calcium phosphate deposits, made from all this extra material, begin latching onto soft tissue, including in the arteries, heart, lungs, and joints. Eventually these deposits start to harden, creating health problems related to the lungs and heart.

 

When this situation gets severe, it isn’t only the cardiovascular system that’s in danger. The leeching of calcium can make bones more bendable, and in the advanced stages of kidney failure, the jaw in particular becomes rubbery. Meanwhile, calcium phosphate deposits in other soft tissue creates inflammation that is hard to treat. And with the extra parathyroid levels, electrical impulses can’t travel properly along the nerves. This can lead to a patient being dazed and unresponsive.

Trying to maintain a low phosphorus diet can help somewhat, but it’s sometimes hard to avoid foods containing milk, whole grains, peas, etc.  Doctors can also help by providing drugs that serve as phosphate binders. So it’s very important for people with even slight kidney problems to consult their physicians and keep checking their electrolyte levels.

 

Electrolytes float through the blood and perform various functions in people’s bodies. Calcium, Sodium, and Potassium, for example, work together to help the muscles of the body contract. And the work of some of these electrically charged substances is controlled or at least affected by the kidneys.

 

This means that when the kidneys are diseased, the electrolytes may also function in an unhealthy way. Serious problems can arise that might, at first, seem unrelated to the kidneys at all. But to understand how these issues develop, we first need to know how electrolytes function when everything works properly.

Let’s take a look at two electrolytes – calcium and phosphorus – which often work together, each substance relying on the kidneys to keep it in balance with the other. The first function of the two is probably obvious: to help build up bones and teeth. Almost everyone knows that calcium is good for building bones, but few are aware that phosphorus is just as important. In fact, while about ninety-nine percent of the calcium in the body is concentrated in the bones, as much as eighty-five percent of the body’s phosphorus may also be found there.

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