Don't you love swimming in a cool, blue pool? Splashing around
in that clear water, floating like a lily pad, swimming like a
shark. But imagine if the water wasn't clear or clean. What if
it was filled with leaves, dirt, hair, and drowned bugs? Yeeech!
You'd be one unhappy shark. You'd probably want to clean it out
before diving in. And you'd want to make sure the pool has a
filter that removes the dirt, leaves, and other uninvited
guests. The Kidneys and What They Do That's kind of what your
kidneys do for you. Your kidneys are fist-sized organs, shaped
like beans. They're below your ribs, toward the back. When waste
that's left over from breaking down food and your body's other
activities naturally builds up in your blood, your kidneys act
like a filter to clean waste from your blood. Then they mix the
waste with a little water. That's what urine is — body waste
mixed in water. The urine goes to your bladder, which you empty
when you pee. Goodbye, waste! When Kidneys Don't Work Right In
addition to removin