Do you know the feeling when a kidney stone gets stuck in the urinary tract? The pain is extreme. So it pays to know how to prevent kidney stones and the agony that comes with them. A recent study showed that this should be easily possible with lemonade.
How to prevent kidney stones
When minerals accumulate in the kidneys and form solid structures there, one speaks of kidney stones. If the stones stay small, that’s not so bad. Therefore, many people, do not notice anything. Occasionally, the small stones (kidney gravel) are even passed unnoticed with the urine.
It only becomes tragic when the stones remain in the kidneys and keep getting bigger. Then a single stone (from 6 millimeters in size) is enough to cause pain while leaving the kidney and making its way outside. If such a stone gets stuck in the ureter (the connection between the kidneys and bladder), the bladder, or in the urethra, the kidney colic is there – and this causes really severe pain.
Another consequence of kidney stones can be a bladder infection or recurring urinary tract infections because kidney stones can lead to a stagnant urine flow, which promotes infections in the urinary tract and bladder.
Prevention is possible
Why kidney stones develop in some people is a mystery to conventional medicine. Therefore, a certain genetic predisposition is considered to be the main cause.
Oddly enough, there is a controversial discussion about whether the wrong diet and lifestyle could be a causal factor in the development of kidney stones. It is strange because precisely those measures that potential kidney stone candidates should take in order to prove that they are 100% effective in prevention only relate to certain dietary and lifestyle habits.
So one would have to look for the cause here, which can usually be found in an incorrect, unhealthy diet and an acidic lifestyle that is hostile to the kidneys. If you turn the situation around by changing your diet and lifestyle, you can often prefent kidney stone.
See a doctor for renal colic
If renal colic occurs, then it is already too late. Nutritional advice is useless now. The stone will need to be dislodged and possibly surgically removed to unblock any possible obstruction to urine flow and of course to ease the excruciating pain.
Conventional medicine is usually the last resort in this case. “Back and abdominal pain, blood in the urine, and nausea and vomiting are the three classic symptoms of kidney stones,” explains Roger L. Sur, MD, and director at the San Diego Comprehensive Kidney Stone Center at the University of California, in a press statement.
“You don’t have to have all three symptoms, but one of them will definitely show up and then be difficult to ignore. If you are in extreme pain, especially if you have a fever, you should see your doctor or go to the emergency room immediately. The presence of a fever indicates you may have an infection that could be life-threatening.”
Once kidney stones, always kidney stones – at least in 50 percent of patients
Unfortunately, the problem is that kidney stones can be successfully removed by conventional medicine. However, according to Dr. Sur – a 50 percent chance of getting new kidney stones within five to ten days. This is not surprising since removing the stones has nothing to do with removing the real cause.
If you keep emptying the bucket that sits under a dripping faucet, hoping it will eventually stay empty, you will understandably be disappointed. Until you realize your faucet needs a new seal, you’ll be lugging buckets day and night.
It’s the same with kidney stones. If you’re constantly cramming new material for kidney stones, you can’t let them shatter fast enough as they form again.
Therefore, the best strategy against kidney stones is not to get them in the first place. Although changing a seal in five minutes is not enough here, the preventive measure that Dr. Sur recommends is a lot more fun than changing a seal. It’s about drinking lemonade.
Table salt: a risk factor for kidney stones
Dr Sur explains that kidney stones in particular, which consist of calcium, could be caused by a diet that is too high in salt. Excessive salt intake stimulates calcium excretion in the urine, which in turn can lead to stone formation.
Therefore, no longer use ordinary table salt, but only high-quality rock, crystal or sea salt – herbal salt is even better, as this consists partly of herbs and you automatically use less salt, at least if you stick to your usual amount (and don’t add salt until you get the taste you’re used to). Also, note here that ready meals of all kinds usually contain a lot of salt, so switching away from ready-made products to home-cooked meals also enables better salt control.
High uric acid levels can lead to kidney stones
Another very common type of kidney stone is formed from uric acid, a by-product of the metabolism of purines which, under certain circumstances, crystallizes and can lead to uric acid stones. A diet rich in animal protein is also high in purines and is therefore considered a risk factor for this type of kidney stone.
One of the reasons for this is that the human body is not well equipped to digest large quantities of meat, fish and seafood. For example, dogs that naturally eat a lot of meat have an enzyme that can break down the uric acid that occurs when they eat meat.
If you are prone to uric acid stones, substitute plant-based protein sources such as legumes and soy products for meat, fish, and seafood. e.g. lupins (belong to the legumes) can even contribute to a reduction in uric acid levels.
There are different study results on soy. In some, soy products showed no uric acid-elevating properties ( 1 ). In others, some soy products increased uric acid levels ( soybeans, soy flour, soy milk) but others did not ( tofu, dried tofu sticks) ( 2 ).
In a review from 2018, in which 9 studies on this topic were evaluated, it was found that red meat, seafood, alcohol and fructose in particular increase uric acid levels. In the case of soy products, no connection with the uric acid level could be determined. Vegetables high in purines also did not affect uric acid levels but reduced the risk of gout (which is also associated with high uric acid levels) ( 3 ).
Can Calcium Cause Kidney Stones?
On the other hand, eliminating natural calcium-rich foods from the diet would be of little help, since calcium-containing kidney stones do not form from the vital calcium found in natural foods (such as green leafy vegetables, algae, poppy seeds, sesame, broccoli, etc.), but from calcium salts, which are only formed in the body when a predominantly acid-forming diet is practiced.
The acids produced during the metabolism of meat, dairy products, pasta, finished products, alcohol, etc. are neutralized with the help of valuable minerals, especially calcium. The result is, among other things, calcium salts. And it is precisely these calcium salts that can now lead to kidney stones if there is insufficient fluid intake.
In addition to drinking plenty of water (see next section) and a preferably alkaline diet, basic deacidification is, therefore, a must for people with a tendency to kidney stones.
The art of drinking right
However, the risk of kidney stones can be significantly reduced if, even with an unsuitable diet, so much pure spring water is drunk that the urine remains almost colorless. It is particularly important here that people with a tendency to have kidney stones make sure that they drink enough good drinking water every day so that they can excrete between 1 and 2 liters of urine.
It is therefore not enough to consistently drink two liters of water, as the amount excreted can vary depending on the outside temperature, diet and activity. In summer, when you sweat a lot, after exercise or after a visit to the sauna, you have to drink far more to achieve the required amount of excretion.
With the help of a measuring cup, the daily amount of urine can be checked. In addition, you should drink throughout the day if possible and even at night if possible. Anyone who stops drinking in the evening in order to be able to sleep better gives the kidney stones the whole night to grow and thrive.
Lemons are natural kidney stone enemies
Many people don’t like the taste of simple spring water, which should also be non-carbonated. Here comes Dr. Sur and his lemonade study just right. In this study, drinking 120 milliliters of lemon water (diluted with two liters of water) daily reduced the kidney stone production rate per patient from 1.0 to 0.13.
Remember that lemons have the highest concentration of citrates of any citrus fruit. Citrates are natural inhibitors of kidney stone formation. Other fruit juices, on the other hand, not only have lower amounts of citrates but are often enriched with poorly digestible calcium – and this in turn is the main component of most kidney stones.
Better to make lemonade yourself
Unfortunately, Dr. Sure points out that commercially available lemonade can no longer be recommended in good conscience. It’s sweetened with either sugar or artificial sweeteners, artificial citric acid, and flavorings that make it in no way suitable as an everyday drink.
That’s why it’s better to make your own lemonade from fresh lemons. Not only is their stone-inhibiting effect likely to be stronger than that of industrial lemonade, but it also has none of the side effects that sweeteners and other synthetic additives can cause. Therefore, the best way to harness the anti-kidney stone power of lemon is this:
If possible, prepare your lemonade freshly just before drinking it. Squeeze one or two lemons per liter of water and sweeten – if absolutely necessary – only with stevia or with a little agave syrup. You can make yourself refreshing vitamin water in a similar way – or you can do the lemon juice cure, which is also called Master Cleanse and is known for its purifying, detoxifying and healing effects.
Vitamin C is not a cause of kidney stones
Vitamin C is sometimes cited as a cause of kidney stones, especially when taken in supplement form. While there are indeed studies showing that vitamin C increases the risk of kidney stones, they also show that for this to happen you need to:
- take it in high doses of more than 1000 mg daily and for years
- and at the same time drink too little
- have a genetic predisposition to kidney stones or excessive formation of oxalate (hyperoxaluria)
- have basic components missing from the diet
- have a magnesium deficiency at the same time