Diet taboos for kidney crystals

Prioritize the control of excessive intake of high-oxalate, high-purine, high-sodium and high-sugar foods, avoid excessive supplementation of vitamin C and D preparations, and do not wait until you are thirsty to drink water - this is the prevention and control principle with the highest consensus in the urology community.

Recently, a lot of friends have come to me to ask this question. When many people get the report, their first reaction is, "Am I not allowed to touch spinach or tofu anymore?" ”To be honest, there is no need to be so anxious. Many people even go overboard and eat boiled vegetables every meal, which makes them malnourished. Not long ago, I met an operations guy who was born in 1995. Last year, nothing happened during his physical examination. This year, he was found to have multiple crystals in both kidneys. He also had pain once when small crystals fell into his ureters. His waist and abdomen were stretched and he broke out in a cold sweat. At first, he thought it was a stomachache caused by eating skewers, and he went to the emergency room to find out what the problem was. He said that he rarely touches plain water in the summer, and the piles of iced Coke and sparkling water next to his workstation are all heavy takeaways for lunch. After get off work, he often goes to barbecue and drink cold beer with his friends. Calculating that his sugar and salt intake exceeds the limit by two or three times in a day, it is strange that the crystallization does not come to him.

As soon as many people heard about the need to control oxalic acid, they immediately blacklisted spinach and soy products. In fact, there is quite a lot of controversy here. The old view did recommend that patients with kidney crystals strictly limit calcium and oxalate foods. However, clinical studies in recent years have found that calcium in normal diet (such as 300ml of milk + 100g of tofu per day) can combine with oxalic acid in the intestines to form unabsorbed calcium oxalate, which is excreted in the feces. This can actually reduce the amount of oxalate entering the blood and eventually reaching the kidneys. As for soy products, as long as you are not eating unprocessed raw soybeans, ordinary brine tofu and Qianzhang have had most of the oxalic acid filtered out during the production process, and you can eat them normally. On the contrary, unblanched spinach, amaranth, parsley, strong tea you drink every day, and eating a lot of nuts at one time are really high in oxalic acid. If you eat raw spinach salad all the time, it is really easy to cause problems.

If the crystals you detect are of the uric acid type (which can be determined through a 24-hour urine uric acid test, or combined with blood uric acid levels), then you need to pay close attention to high-purine foods. Don’t show off your food such as intestines, foie gras and other animal offal, shelled seafood, thick broth and hot pot soup that have been simmered for several hours. You should also drink less beer. Otherwise, uric acid will rise quickly and uric acid crystals will accumulate. Not only will it easily block the kidneys, but it will eventually develop into gout. If you have calcium oxalate type crystals, then these don’t need to be too much, and it’s perfectly fine to eat hot pot to satisfy your cravings occasionally.

There are also hidden pitfalls that many people tend to overlook, which are processed foods high in sodium and sugar. The pickles, potato chips, ham sausages, and heavy-tasting dishes in takeaways that you eat often contain two or three times more sodium than allowed. Excessive sodium intake will promote urinary calcium excretion. If there is more calcium in the kidneys, it will naturally be more likely to combine with oxalic acid to form crystals. There are also added sugars in milk tea and carbonated drinks, which also have the same effect. Don’t think that the salty and sweet nature of these things has nothing to do with stones. I have seen many patients in their twenties who have crystallized stones from drinking milk tea every day.

By the way, a little trivia, don’t make up for VC and VD blindly. Many people like to buy those VC effervescent tablets. They take one tablet a day to whiten their skin and enhance their resistance. If the content of one tablet exceeds 1000mg, if taken for a long time, the excess VC will be metabolized into oxalic acid in the body, which will increase the risk of calcium oxalate crystallization. If you supplement too much VD, it will promote the absorption of calcium in the intestines. If the blood calcium is high, the urinary calcium will be high, which is also prone to problems. It is best to check the blood before supplementing. If you are deficient, replenish it. Don't eat blindly.

My general advice to patients is that they don’t have to treat their diet like a spiritual practice. If they don’t dare to eat anything, their lives will be boring. For example, if you blanch spinach for 1 minute, more than 70% of the oxalic acid will be removed. It is perfectly fine to eat it with tofu. When drinking water, don't stick to the rigid standard of "8 glasses of water a day." Drink a couple more sips if you sweat more in the summer, and drink less in the winter if you sweat less. The color of your urine is most accurate. If your urine is a light lemonade color, it's just right. If your urine is as strong as iced tea, drink water quickly. Don't wait until you're thirsty. When you're thirsty, your body has been dehydrated for a long time, and the urine has long been overconcentrated, and crystals will easily settle.

In fact, kidney crystals themselves are an early warning from your body, indicating that your recent lifestyle habits are too indulgent. Don’t be too anxious. As long as you slightly adjust your diet and run more, many small crystals will be excreted in the urine. Just review the B-ultrasound every six months. There is really no need to treat yourself harshly for this every day.