Healthy diet to prevent kidney stone

Diet has major role in developing any disease. Poor diet badly affects kidney and aids in development of stones.

Kidney stones can be developed when substances in the urine such as calcium, oxalate, and phosphorus become highly concentrated. The body uses food for energy and tissue repair. After the body uses nutrients, waste products in the bloodstream are carried to the kidneys and excreted as urine. It is important to know that diet plays vital role to promote or inhibit kidney stone formation. Certain foods may lead to stone formation in people who are vulnerable. Though, medical researchers have not confirmed that any specific food may cause stones formation in people who are not susceptible. Other factors also lead to kidney stone formation such as genes, environment, body weight, and fluid intake.

Types of kidney stones:

There are many types of kidney stones:

-       Calcium stones are the most common type of kidney stone and occur in two major forms: calcium oxalate and calcium phosphate. Calcium oxalate stones are more common. Calcium oxalate stone formation may be due to high calcium and high oxalate excretion. Calcium phosphate stones are developed due to the combination of high urine calcium and alkaline urine, meaning the urine has a high pH.

-       Uric acid stones develop when the urine is insistently acidic. If uric acid becomes concentrated in the urine, it can settle and form a stone by itself or along with calcium.

-       Struvite stones are developed if there is some kidney infections. Struvite stones can be prevented through eliminating infected stones from the urinary tract and staying infection-free.

-       Cystine stones develops due to a genetic disorder that causes cystine to leak through the kidneys and into the urine, forming crystals that tend to collect into stones.

Diagnosis of kidney stone:

Blood and urine can be tested for unusual levels of chemicals such as calcium, oxalate, and sodium to help determine type of kidney stone a person may have had.

Nutritional Changes to Help person to prevent Kidney Stones:

To prevent kidney stones people must know the reason of developing stones. This information helps the doctor/nutritionist to advise diet changes to avoid future kidney stones.

-       Drinking enough fluids helps prevent all types of kidney stones. Doctors recommend that a person should drink 2 to 3 litres of fluid a day. Besides water, people must drink other fluids to avoid kidney stones such as citrus drinks.

-       Person must restrict the amount of salt in diet. It is good to include in diet more fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables; whole grains; milk and yogurt; small portions of unseasoned meat, fish and poultry; and unsalted nuts and seeds.

-       People having kidney stones must not consume packaged foods, ready-to-eat foods, fast foods and restaurant meals as these are rich in sodium.

-       People with kidney stone must eat high calcium foods instead of taking supplements. These foods include:

·         Milk and other dairy products.

·         Calcium-fortified foods and beverages such as calcium-fortified tofu, calcium-fortified soy and rice drinks and orange juice.

·         Fish canned with the bones

-       People must not consume alcohol.

Foods that increase the amount of oxalate in urine include

o   Spinach

o   Nuts

o   Wheat bran

People who have tendency to develop stones must avoid these foods.

Kidney stones are preventable medical conditions and people have to make some dietary changes in daily life to avert these stones. Initial efforts are necessary to become healthy and free from kidney stones.