Aldosterone is a hormone made by the adrenal glands that regulates fluid and electrolyte balance by making the kidneys retain water and sodium while excreting potassium. It releases when blood pressure or fluid volume drops, creating a feedback loop that raises water and sodium levels while lowering potassium. Understanding this mechanism is essential for managing fluid and electrolyte disorders in nursing.
What is aldosterone? I'm gonna tell you everything that you need to know about aldosterone in this video. And if you want more nursing school tips and tricks and resources, be sure to subscribe and click the bell. Now, let's do it. What is up? My friend Christina here with nursingschoolofsuccess.com and today in this video, we are talking all about the hormone aldosterone. So aldosterone is hormone that is released by the adrenal glands, and the adrenal glands sit on top of the kidneys. So sometimes you might hear that the kidneys release aldosterone. That's really only half true, Slash, not really true at all. Aldosterone is really released by those adrenal glands, and those adrenal glands are on top of the kidneys. And aldosterone plays a huge role in balancing fluids and electrolytes in the body, particularly regulating fluid volume, sodium, and potassium levels. So there are four key things that I want you to know about aldosterone. Number one, it is released if the blood pressure or fluid volume gets too low or if there is some disease causing it to release when it's not supposed to. Number two, it causes the kidneys to hold onto water. Number three, it causes the kidneys to hold onto sodium. And number four, it causes the kidneys to get rid of potassium. Now, let's do some critical thinking around this so we can really understand what is happening with aldosterone. So when the blood volume in the body is low and the blood pressure is lower, aldosterone is stimulated to be released. And when aldosterone is released, it has those three main actions and causes the kidneys to hold on to water. Causes the kidneys to hold on to sodium, too. And it causes the kidneys to get rid of potassium, like we said. So when aldosterone is released, the fluid and sodium levels are going to rise in the body and the potassium level is going to drop. Does that all make sense? I hope it does, because aldosterone tells the kidneys to hold on to more water and sodium and get rid of potassium. Now, let's talk about the flip side of all this. What do you think will happen when there is too much fluid volume in the body already? Aldosterone will be inhibited. Yes, because aldosterone's job is to keep sodium and water inside the body. But when there's already too much fluid in the body, it doesn't need any more. So aldosterone should not be released. So make sure to remember those four key things. About aldosterone. It is released if the blood pressure or fluid volume gets too low or if there is a disease causing it to be released when it's not supposed to. It causes the kidneys to hold on to water, causes the kidneys to hold on to sodium, and it tells the kidneys to get rid of potassium and that is the role of aldosterone in the body. Now make sure that you print off the Med Surg checklist that I've got for you. It's going to walk you through, step by step how to study Med Surg in nursing school. And of course, if you want more videos to guide you through nursing school and help you out, you will definitely want to check out the Nursing SOS Membership community that's packed with more Med Surg videos, cheat sheets, study guides and care plans for you to help you succeed in nursing school. Thank you so much for watching this video friend. Now go become the nurse that God created only you to be and I'll see you right back here next time time on the Nursing School Show. Take care of.
