Your diet has a lot to do with kidney stones. What you eat and drink is very important if you are trying to avoid kidney stones and also shouldn’t eat and drink. Remember, kidney stones are a typically painful condition. Here Hrefna Palsdottir, MS, HealthLine.com, reflects on natural remedies to fight kidney stones at home:

“Kidney stones are a common health problem.

Passing these stones can be incredibly painful, and unfortunately, people who have experienced kidney stones are more likely to get them again (1Trusted Source).

However, there are a few things you can do to reduce this risk.

This article explains what kidney stones are and outlines 8 dietary ways to fight them.

What are kidney stones?

Also known as renal stones or nephrolithiasis, kidney stones are composed of hard, solid waste materials that build up in the kidneys and form crystals.

Four main types exist, but about 80% of all stones are calcium oxalate stones. Less common forms include struvite, uric acid, and cysteine (2Trusted Source, 3Trusted Source).

While smaller stones are usually not a problem, larger stones may cause a blockage in part of your urinary system as they leave your body.

This can lead to severe pain, vomiting, and bleeding.

Kidney stones are a common health problem. In fact, about 12% of men and 5% of women in the United States will develop a kidney stone during their lifetime (3Trusted Source).

What’s more, if you get a kidney stone once, studies suggest you are up to 50% more likely to form another stone within 5 to 10 years (4Trusted Source, 5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source).

Below are 8 natural ways you can reduce the risk of forming another kidney stone.

Stay Hydrated

When it comes to kidney stone prevention, drinking plenty of fluids is generally recommended.

Fluids dilute and increase the volume of the stone-forming substances in urine, which makes them less likely to crystallize (3Trusted Source).

However, not all fluids exert this effect equally. For example, a high intake of water is linked to a lower risk of kidney stone formation (7Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source).

Beverages like coffee, tea, beer, wine, and orange juice have also been associated with a lower risk (9Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source, 11Trusted Source).

On the other hand, consuming a lot of soda may contribute to kidney stone formation. This is true for both sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened sodas (9Trusted Source).

Sugar-sweetened soft drinks contain fructose, which is known to increase the excretion of calcium, oxalate, and uric acid. These are important factors for kidney stone risk (12Trusted Source, 13Trusted Source).

Some studies have also linked a high intake of sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened colas to an increased risk of kidney stones, due to their phosphoric acid contents (14Trusted Source, 15Trusted Source).

Increase your citric acid intake

Citric acid is an organic acid found in many fruits and vegetables, particularly citrus fruits. Lemons and limes are especially rich in this plant compound (16Trusted Source).

Citric acid may help prevent calcium oxalate kidney stones in two ways (17Trusted Source):

1. Preventing stone formation: It can bind with calcium in urine, reducing the risk of new stone formation (18Trusted Source, 19Trusted Source).
2. Preventing stone enlargement: It binds with existing calcium oxalate crystals, preventing them from getting larger. It can help you pass these crystals before they turn into larger stones (16Trusted Source, 19Trusted Source).

An easy way to consume more citric acid is to eat more citrus fruits, such as grapefruit, oranges, lemons, or limes.

You can also try adding some lime or lemon juice to your water.

Eat less animal protein

A diet high in animal protein sources, such as meat, fish, and dairy, is associated with a higher risk of kidney stones.

A high intake of animal protein may increase calcium excretion and decrease levels of citrate (46Trusted Source, 47Trusted Source).

In addition, animal protein sources are rich in purines. These compounds are broken down into uric acid and may increase the risk of forming uric acid stones (48Trusted Source, 49Trusted Source).

All foods contain purines in varying amounts.

Kidney, liver, and other organ meats are very high in purines. On the other hand, plant foods are low in these substances.”

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