Organ failure: How to keep your kidneys healthy

A woman drinks water after a session of exercise. [Getty Images]

For most of us, body organs inspire little awe and wonder. They do their jobs and just keep plugging away until one day, they fail or stop. One such organ is the kidney.

"It is so silent we take it for granted," says Dr Samuel Kariuki Kabinga, a nephrologist (specialises in the kidneys and diseases that affect them). "But when the kidneys fail, the repercussions are profound for the individual owning those kidneys," he says.