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"Waking up sweaty all night isn't just because your quilt is too thick." These were the first words of Chen Xiaoming, a family doctor, to Li Qingsong, when he finally decided to go to the hospital for a check-up after weeks of late-night night sweats.
Li Qingsong, a 34-year-old architectural designer, often works overtime late into the night due to the intense pressure of his work.
His lifestyle habits seem impeccable – go to bed early and wake up early, exercise consistently, and eat a healthy diet.
However, these recent unusual nights of sweating have left him uneasy.
At the Central Hospital, after a series of examinations and laboratory tests, Li Qingsong was diagnosed with early renal insufficiency, which was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for him.
Doctor Chen Xiaoming explained that although Li Qingsong's lifestyle habits seem to be very healthy, there are actually three foods that are quietly harming his kidneys.
The first type of food is high-salt food. Excessive salt intake can lead to an increase in blood pressure, which can be a huge burden on the kidneys in the long run.
The doctor detailed that many seemingly healthy ready-to-eat foods contain much more sodium than expected, even without direct salting.
Li Qingsong suddenly realized that the ready-to-eat cereals and canned soups he usually eats regularly for convenience may be hidden high-salt traps.
The second is processed meat. Doctors mentioned that processed meats such as sausages and bacon contain a lot of preservatives and chemical additives.
These substances increase the metabolic burden on the kidneys. Although Li Qingsong rarely eats fast food, he occasionally buys these foods as a quick fix for parties.
The third is sugar-sweetened beverages. Chen stressed that even beverages that are advertised as "healthy" or "sugar-free" can pose a threat to kidney health through sweeteners.
He elaborated on a study stating that even artificial sweeteners can affect the filtration function of the kidneys.
The doctor also shared several cases similar to Li Qingsong, who also unknowingly damaged their kidneys due to long-term ingestion of these foods.
For example, a senior manager who regularly consumes convenience foods was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease at the age of 40;
Another university professor, who likes to drink several cans of soft drinks a day, also recently noticed signs of deterioration in kidney function.
After learning that his kidney problems might be related to his eating habits, Li Qingsong began to scrutinize his eating habits.
He decided to change his intake of these three foods from now on, and at the same time increase physical activity in order to gradually restore kidney health.
Even seemingly innocuous everyday choices can have a non-negligible impact on our health.
This raises the question: do modern people ignore the hidden risks that may cause health in the process of food processing when pursuing "convenience and speed"?
In-depth analysis of this problem, we can find that although modern food processing technology has greatly improved the preservation time and taste of food, it also brings some potential health threats.
For example, in order to extend the shelf life of food products, producers may add large amounts of salt, sugar, and various chemical additives to food products, which unknowingly increase the health burden on consumers.
In this regard, the public should pay more attention to food composition lists, reduce dependence on processed foods, and increase the consumption of fresh and unprocessed foods.
At the same time, governments and health organizations should increase education and publicity on food safety and health impacts, and help the public establish the right concept of food consumption, so as to better protect their kidney health and overall well-being.
What are your thoughts on this? Welcome to discuss in the comment area!