Around 3 million people in the United States visit a physician to complain about kidney stones each year, and the pain from the urological condition sends another half million to the emergency room, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Most kidney stones form from minerals in your body, and you may be able to reduce your chances of developing more stones by adjusting your diet.
Symptoms/Causes
No one knows why kidney stones form. When minerals that always are present in your urine crystallize, they create a kidney stone, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Most kidney stones don't cause any symptoms, and pass harmlessly out of the body in your urine. However, some stones can lodge in your urinary tract and cause intense pain until they pass.
Formation
About 80 percent of all kidney stones contain some calcium, according to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. They also contain other minerals, most often oxalate and phosphate. If you've just passed a stone, your physician can analyze it to determine what minerals it contains. Many foods contain calcium, phosphate or oxalate, so individuals who have been diagnosed with kidney stones that contain these minerals may need to follow a special diet.
High-Calcium Foods
If your physician tells you that your kidney stones contain calcium, you may need to limit calcium in your diet to reduce the chances of forming another stone, according to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Foods high in calcium include dairy products, along with dark leafy vegetables such as kale. Be careful not to cut back too far on your calcium intake, because you'll risk damaging the health of your bones if you consume too little calcium.
Oxalates and Phosphates
Kidney stones commonly contain either oxalate or phosphate in addition to calcium, according to the Medical College of Wisconsin. Foods such as wheat flour include high levels of oxalates, as do spinach, tea, chocolate and nuts, so you may need to limit those foods. Soda and tomatoes, meanwhile, contain high levels of phosphates.
Considerations
Sodium, another mineral, appears to influence the amount of calcium that your body excretes in the urine, even though it's not directly involved in kidney stone formation, according to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Therefore, you might want to discuss a reduced-sodium diet with your physician. Keeping your sodium intake below 3,500 mg per day seems to help.
