Foods That Cause Kidney Stones and How to Prevent Them

Every year, more than 3 million Americans seek medical treatment for their kidney stones, while millions more choose to stay home and pass them on their own.

Additionally, 50% of people who develop a kidney stone will have a second one within five years. Depending on the size and the location of the stone, medical intervention may not be necessary, meaning that there’s no way to know how many people deal with kidney stones each year.

If you were to ask most people what causes kidney stones, they would probably point to excess soft drink consumption. Others believe that drinking milk, which is rich in calcium, leads to kidney stones.

What many people don’t realize is that the food you eat can cause kidney stones. Today, discover some foods that can increase your chances of getting a kidney stone and how you can take some steps to protect yourself from these painful, potentially dangerous stones.

Are There Different Types of Kidney Stones?

All kidney stones are not created equal. Before we dive into what types of foods can cause kidney stones and how to avoid them, it’s important to understand that there are different types of kidney stones. These stones are all painful, but they present their own unique problems, present their own symptoms, and have unique causes.

Calcium stones, which are the most common type of kidney stone, can be broken up into two sub-categories. Some are calcium phosphate stones while the most common kidney stones are calcium oxalate stones.

If your urine is high in acid, you may experience uric acid stones. Cystine kidney stones are the least common type and are typically only experienced by people who deal with a genetic disorder called cystinuria.

What Foods Can Cause Kidney Stones?

While most urologists and nephrologists agree that drinking excessive soft drinks, sugared teas, and energy drinks can increase your likelihood of getting kidney stones, they also point to certain foods.

Whether you have dealt with kidney stones in the past and want to protect your kidneys in the future, or you simply want to avoid dealing with the crippling pain and other issues caused by kidney stones, avoiding these foods altogether, or cutting down on how often you eat them is a great place to start.

High Sodium Foods

Most people know about the importance of avoiding foods that are high in sodium if they have blood pressure issues, but sodium is also bad for your kidneys. Your body needs a certain amount of sodium, but when you take in too much sodium, the kidneys must work harder to try to get it out.

Restaurants use a lot of salt, not only to economically improve flavoring but also to help food last longer. Salt is a preservative, which is why you’ll also find it in cured foods such as pepperoni, jerky, and ham.

Processed foods, such as macaroni and cheese, pizza, and some types of crackers also have a high sodium content. Finally, canned soups, beans, and vegetables are often high in sodium because manufacturers need to preserve the food while it’s in the cans.

High Oxalate Foods

The presence of high oxalate foods on this list is a bit surprising, as oxalate is typically found in certain types of produce. From the time that you were a child, you were told that fruits and vegetables are good for you.

However, all fruits and vegetables have oxalates in them, and high concentrations of oxalates are shown to cause kidney stones.

Some fruits and vegetables that have higher levels of oxalates include:

• Rhubarb • Rice bran • Buckwheat • Potatoes • Beets • Spinach • Kale • Collard greens

This does not mean that you should avoid fruits and vegetables. In fact, the opposite is true. Vegetables and fruits can help reduce the amount of acid in your urine, making it less likely for you to get kidney stones.

However, you should try to monitor the amount of oxalates in your diet, starting with these foods.

High Calcium Foods

Much like vegetables, you’ve probably heard about the importance of eating foods that are high in calcium and drinking milk from your childhood. Calcium plays a major role in bone health and tooth health, so you need to get calcium in your diet.

However, we’ve already established that calcium-based kidney stones are the most common, so what should you do?

Experts agree that you should try to stay at or below the daily recommended amount of calcium, which is around 1,000 mg. Drinking a couple of glasses of milk is fine. However, as is the case with most aspects of a healthy diet, moderation is key.

Ultimately, if you take in too much calcium, which is found in milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, and other dairy-based products, your kidneys try to remove it from your body through your urine. This excessive amount of calcium in your urine leads to the formation of kidney stones.

Vitamin C…With a Catch

Yes, vitamin C, a vitamin found in lots of fruits and vegetables, orange juice, and more, is a very important vitamin when it comes to your immune system. Doctors have long encouraged patients to get plenty of vitamin C, especially during cold and flu season.

However, there are now studies that indicate that consuming too much of this essential vitamin can lead to kidney stones.

This is bad news, but only for a portion of the population. The studies that focused on the correlation between vitamin C and kidney stones indicated that this is only true in men.

There are a variety of potential causes for this, but the studies have been verified numerous times. Men are more likely to get kidney stones if they consume too much vitamin C, but women should also be mindful of the amount they consume.

How to Protect Yourself Against Kidney Stones

Regarding the types of foods and drinks that we’ve already discussed here, moderation is key. You don’t have to completely cut calcium or sodium out of your diet unless you’ve been told to do so by a physician. However, it’s important to not go overboard.

You can protect your kidneys by ensuring that you’re drinking enough water. Water is the easiest thing for your kidneys to process, and it keeps all of your organs, muscles, and tissue operating as designed.

It’s also a good idea to maintain a healthy weight. Countless studies have been conducted that indicate that patients who struggle with obesity are more likely to have kidney stones.

Finally, getting regular physical activity has been shown to cut down on kidney stones. It’s possible that this is because physical activity leads to lower body weight and usually leads to people drinking more water.

There are plenty of reasons that people get kidney stones that have nothing to do with diet. Genetics, other health issues, and even some unknown factors have been blamed for kidney stones over the years.

While these dietary tips may not completely protect you from dealing with kidney stones, they can certainly help.