Kidney Pain After Drinking Alcohol: What Could Be Causing It

Even higher risks of kidney problems have been found in heavy drinkers who also smoke. A UTI can be a minor infection, but if it travels to and takes hold in the kidneys, it can cause lasting kidney damage and even kidney failure if it isn’t treated successfully in time. When worrying about how alcohol affects the kidneys, many wonder, “Can alcohol cause kidney stones?” Dehydration can, and excessive alcohol consumption quickly induces dehydration. This is why many a hangover recovery involves drinking a sports drink full of electrolytes or (more problematically) a hair-of-the-dog cure in the form of a spicy Bloody Mary. One reason alcohol may affect the kidneys is through acute kidney injury.

• Acute kidney damage or an infection can be the cause of post-alcohol renal pain.
• For those in need of a more focused and intensive recovery journey, our intensive outpatient programs provide the necessary structure and depth.
• For women, heavy drinking is considered more than three drinks per sitting or more than seven drinks per week.
• Recovery from alcohol damage depends on the severity of the case.

Urinary Tract Infection is an Effect of Alcohol on Kidneys

As a result, you can develop kidney damage and kidney disease. The chronic misuse of alcohol also increases blood pressure. If you drink more than 2 drinks a day, you are at risk of high blood pressure. We all know that drinking too much alcohol is bad for our health. Having a few drinks now and then won’t typically affect your health.

General Health

This can be due to alcohol causing an autoimmune reaction that causes this inflammation. Alcohol can also suppress your immune system, increasing the risk of glomerulonephritis. This condition can lead to short- and long-term kidney damage.

Myth: Consuming alcohol in normal amounts can cause direct damage to the kidneys

For example, a person with a UTI that spreads to the kidneys can develop sepsis, a dangerous infection of the blood. Kidney pain usually appears in the back, on either side of the spine, just under the ribs. A person who experiences this type of pain, especially if it intensifies over hours or days, may have a serious illness and should speak to a doctor. Follow a low-fat, healthy diet that has plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. A good night’s rest is extremely important to your overall well-being and, it turns out, your kidneys. Kidney function is regulated by the sleep-wake cycle which helps coordinate the kidneys’ workload over 24 hours.

Symptoms might initially go unnoticed until kidney function is significantly diminished, highlighting the importance of early intervention and regular checkups. In some cases, severe alcohol use in a short period can lead to acute kidney injury (AKI). AKI is a rapid decline in kidney function that may appear alongside other health issues, such as rhabdomyolysis (a breakdown of muscle tissue). This condition can cause muscle proteins to enter the bloodstream and clog kidney filters. Binge drinking — typically defined as consuming five or more drinks for men or four or more drinks for women within approximately two hours — places intense stress on the kidneys.

• To begin with, you must know the causes of kidney pain that occurs due to binge drinking and the symptoms accompanying it.
• But, if you’re an otherwise healthy person, your body can typically recover from acute kidney failure with the appropriate medical attention.
• The damage caused by alcohol to the kidneys can escalate quickly, making it essential to stop drinking before it’s too late.

Ask your healthcare provider if it is safe for you to drink, especially if you have a medical condition or take medicines that might be affected by using alcohol. Women, older people, and those with smaller bodies should be especially careful. These are signs that the kidneys are not working as they should, and they can be symptoms of acute kidney injury due to a high alcohol consumption. Not all forms of kidney disease are preventable, but adopting a healthful lifestyle may reduce the risk of complications, even in people with genetic kidney disorders. Drinking alcohol if you already have kidney stones may cause them to move quickly.

This is the area at the back of your abdomen, under your rib cage on both sides of your spine. According to the NKF, one potential symptom of AKI is flank pain, which is pain in the side of the back, https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/how-addictive-is-oxycontin/ between the ribs and hips. Alcohol and other waste products must be removed from the body by the kidneys.

Keep track of your drinks using does alcohol affect your kidneys an app or a diary so you can monitor your progress. Treat gastritis by avoiding alcohol, pain medications, and recreational drugs. Your doctor may prescribe proton pump inhibitors or H2 antagonists to reduce the production of stomach acid.

Here, we’ll share insights into some of the ways alcohol impacts the kidneys and how much alcohol is safe to drink. Here are some of the potential causes of alcohol-related kidney pain. Sustaining a physical injury to the kidneys, such as by falling from a height, amphetamine addiction treatment may also cause kidney pain.