Doctor Hong Yongxiang, a renowned nephrologist in Taipei, disclosed this typical clinical case on 15/1 to warn about the lifestyle of modern youth. The office worker was admitted to the emergency room in critical condition, her lungs filled with water, causing severe shortness of breath, as if she were drowning. Test results revealed alarming levels of toxins in her blood, necessitating immediate intubation and emergency hemodialysis to sustain her life.

Illustrative photo: Pexels

Before this critical incident, Xiao Han had noticed facial swelling for six months but dismissed it, attributing it to late nights spent meeting sales targets. However, in-depth examinations revealed she had been suffering from chronic glomerulonephritis and proteinuria for many years, which had gone untreated. Her unhealthy lifestyle and daily high sugar intake acted as "the final straw," accelerating the degeneration of her already damaged excretory organs.

Delving deeper into the disease mechanism, Doctor Hong identified the habit of consuming high-fructose syrup drinks instead of plain water as the primary culprit behind kidney damage. The metabolism of this sugar produces uric acid, which affects kidney tubules like shards of broken glass, leading to chronic interstitial nephritis, while also increasing the risk of obesity and diabetes. He described Taiwan's "bubble tea culture" as a nightmare for public kidney health.

Beyond sugary drinks, the medical expert highlighted four other harmful factors silently eroding kidney function: Frequent late nights disrupt the biological clock, hindering the body's natural detoxification process and nocturnal blood pressure regulation. Diets rich in sodium and phosphorus from processed foods, or excessive protein consumption among bodybuilders, also create an overloaded filtering pressure on the glomeruli. Crucially, the abuse of painkillers and over-the-counter supplements can lead to a sudden drop in blood flow to the kidneys, causing physical damage that is difficult to reverse.

Doctor Hong warned that kidneys are highly resilient organs, often not signaling pain until their function has declined by 70%. He emphasized that the human body lacks a backup mechanism for these organs; once kidneys completely fail, the quality of life severely diminishes. The expert advised people to moderate their intake of sugary drinks, increase plain water consumption, and undergo regular health check-ups, to avoid letting "temporary taste satisfaction ruin the rest of one's life."

Binh Minh (According to CitiNews)