Kidney Stones - Dietary Precautions You Must Take!

Do you know that if you are obese, or frequently dehydrated or if you have a family history of kidney stone you at risk for developing the same as well? Furthermore, if you had kidney stone previously, you may develop one again. But there is no need to panic as you may follow certain simple measures to prevent the formation of kidney stone and avoid the accompanying discomfort.

Important precautionary measures
When it comes to improving the health of your kidneys, drinking an adequate amount of liquid, mainly water is of utmost importance. Unless you are suffering from kidney failure, urologists recommend having around 6 to 8 glasses of water in a day. Since studies also indicate that being overweight puts you at a higher risk of developing kidney stones, consult an experienced dietitian who can aid you in planning meals for helping you lose weight. And, if you already had a kidney stone in the past, adopt the following measures to avoid recurrence.

1. Calcium oxalate stones: It is essential to reduce the amount of oxalate in the diet to reduce the level of oxalate in the urine. For instance, you should reduce the consumptions of nuts, peanut legumes, spinach, rhubarb, and wheat bran. You should also reduce the amount of sodium and animal protein in the diet. You should also aim to get enough calcium from your diet.
2. Calcium phosphate stones: Regardless of what type of stones you are likely to be affected with, taking too much of sodium increases the risk of having kidney stones. You should also limit animal protein which includes eggs, fish and shellfish, beef, chicken, pork, milk, cheese and other dairy stuff. You should also consult an expert about what are the best sources of calcium for your specific condition.
3. Uric acid stones: Even though you have to limit the amount of animal protein in your diet, you should ensure to get enough protein in the diet. You may consider replacing some amount of animal protein with some of the plant-based foods such as soy foods, legumes, nuts and nuts products and sunflower seeds. If you are overweight, you should consider losing the required weight for preventing the occurrence of uric acid stones.
4. Cystine stones: To avoid cysteine stones, drinking enough water is the most significant lifestyle alteration that you can make. You should also check if the foods you are eating are sources of hidden sodium. For instance, you must limit the intake of baking soda, baking powder, disodium phosphate, sodium nitrate or nitrite and monosodium glutamate.

As can be seen, no one shoe fits all concept when it comes to kidney stones.