What Causes Kidney Stones & How to Prevent Them
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Are you scared of kidney stones, have dealt with the pain of them in the past, or just want to prevent them?
I’m going to give you some proven tips for preventing kidney stones that will help you get rid of them naturally without medications.
The 4 Types of Kidney Stone
There are 4 types of kidney stones. Knowing which type of kidney stone you have will help you take the necessary steps to prevent them in the future!
Calcium Oxalate/Phosphates
This is the most common type of kidney stone. These form when calcium combines with the oxalates that your body produces.
Uric Acid
These kidney stones are caused by consuming a lot of sugars, fructose, and processed meats.
Struvite
These stones are most common in people who have UTIs or bladder infections and are very difficult to get out.
Cystine
This type depends more on genetics and has to do with the body’s inability to deal with amino acids inside the kidney.
Perform the following tests to find out what kind of kidney stones you are dealing with. This will allow you to get rid of kidney stones more and prevent them in the future.
3 Simple Ways To Test For Kidney Stones
Check Your Urine
There could be oxalates, uric acid, or ammonium in your urine, which will tell you if you have the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd type of kidney stones.
Check Your Blood Levels
This can help check how your body is processing the oxalates in your blood.
Stone Analysis
You can also look into how the stones are created. Just because calcium makes up the stone, does not mean you should stop eating calcium. The cause of the stones could have less to do with oxalates and calcium, and more to do with your liver being bogged down.
Causes Of Kidney Stones
Hydration
Poor hydration is the #1 cause of kidney stones. Water may not be enough, because your body may not be absorbing the water that you drink.
Weight
If you’re overweight, you’re probably eating too many sugars, carbohydrates, and too much toxic meat, which can cause uric acid kidney stones.
Sugars & Carbs
Sugars and carbs, especially fructose, are going to decrease the absorption of magnesium and calcium. This is a problem because these are what stop kidney stones from occurring in the first place.
Soy & Beer
Having soy and beer is not a good idea if you’re trying to prevent kidney stones. If you do choose to have them, make sure they don’t have gluten in them and aren’t genetically modified.
Table Salt
We don’t want to cut salt out altogether, but we should stay away from table salt. I recommend real salt in the form of sea salt or Himalayan salt.
Blood Pressure
If you have a blood pressure issue, you should work on addressing that first. Blood pressure drives a lot of kidney issues.
Fruits & Veggies
You need to be eating more fruits and vegetables if you want to reduce kidney stones. This will give your body more potassium from a healthy source.
Medication
If you’re taking over-the-counter pain medications, you are asking for kidney stones.
Although the things on this list are not always the cause of kidney stones, addressing these issues will cure your kidney stones more often than not.
What Can You Take To Prevent Kidney Stones?
- Vitamin B6 – 50 milligrams. Vitamin B6 helps flush out and support the kidneys.
- Magnesium – 400 milligrams. Magnesium directly prevents stone formation in the kidneys, and protects the kidneys against oxalates.
- Potassium – 4,100 milligrams. You can get potassium through fruits, vegetables, and sea salts.
- Taurine – Taurine blocks oxalate absorption and helps you produce bile in your liver, which aids detox efforts.
If you’re looking for an easy way to get magnesium, potassium, and taurine in your diet, I have an electrolyte powder that I use on a daily basis that will give you all three.
If you have kidney issues, I would advise against consuming too much potassium.
Getting Rid Of Kidney Stones
Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar contains high amounts of acetic acid, which help loosen and break down kidney stones. I recommend taking 2 tablespoons of this in the morning, and 2 again at night.
Lemon Water
Lemon water is good at preventing stones and is good for the liver. It produces bile, has a lot of nutrients, is alkaline, and helps stop the absorption of and break down oxalates.
Candida Cleanse
Candida is a type of yeast that builds up in the lining of our digestive tract. Sometimes, we can’t even tell that this is happening until our tongue turns white or we start gaining weight. Too much yeast in our system not only causes UTIs, but can mess with our oxalates and create kidney stones. The candida cleanse I use and recommend is called a microbe cleanse because it not only addresses candida, but other parasites and microbes that can occur in your body.
Foods
Increase the amount of calcium-rich foods you’re eating. Avoid calcium supplements, because it will lead to side effects like hardened arteries. If you’re looking for good food sources of calcium, I recommend the following:
- Raw Cheese
- Broccoli
- Beans
- Kale
You can eat a lot of these on a daily basis and get plenty of calcium into your system. This is going to pair with oxalates and prevent kidney stones from forming in the body.
Potassium & Magnesium
Potassium and magnesium have been proven to be very effective against kidney stones. When taken together, they can create an 85% reduction in the recurrence of kidney stones.
Increase Liver & Bile Function
Stop eating carbs and sugars if you have kidney stones. If you want to support the liver, I suggest using ox bile and bile salts, which will help flush the liver out. These can both be found in my GI Support.
Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid that can help prevent kidney stones by blocking the absorption of oxalate. Kidney stones are often caused by high levels of oxalate in the body, so taurine is a helpful tool in getting rid of them.
Summary
My electrolyte powder has potassium, magnesium, and taurine, so you can get them in an easy and delicious way. I would also recommend using the GI Support with a candida cleanse if you’re in the middle of a kidney stone.
If you’re not dealing with kidney stones, follow the steps at the beginning of this blog to prevent kidney stones and other issues that can occur like fatigue.
Poor hydration is the number one cause of kidney stones, and the first thing you should work on fixing. This goes a lot further than just drinking water, and I made a video to help you understand why.
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