Nutrition research studies that extol the virtues of healthy foods, healthy eating and healthy lifestyles are published daily, the number of blog posts listed here is testament to that. What we eat can affect every aspect of our body and every organ system from the brain to the liver and beyond. Eating healthily is an important way to prevent many health conditions from cancer to osteoporosis. Fuelling our body well is truly vital for healthy living!
A recent study (1) has found that eating healthily can prevent kidney stone formation. Kidney stones are quite common. The NHS website (2) states that in the UK kidney stones affect around three in 20 men and 1 in 20 women. Kidneys work by removing waste products from the blood. The waste products are usually dissolved in the fluids that form urine but, occasionally, they can form crystals that collect around the inside of the kidney. The crystals may gather over time to form a hard stone-like lump. This is a kidney stone. After a kidney stone has formed, it will often travel through the urinary system as it tries to be passed in urine. However, it is fairly common for a stone to block part of the urinary system, such as the ureter or the urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the outside of the body). If this happens, severe pain may be experienced in the abdomen or groin. A blockage in the urinary system can also lead to infection or more serious problems (2)
The study (1), mentioned above, looked at the link between a healthy diet, specifically a diet known as the DASH diet (The impact of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and incidence of kidney stones. The researchers examined data from three very large cohort studies:
1.Health Professionals Follow-up Study – which involved 45,821 men who were followed for 18 years.
2. Nurses’ Health Study I – which involved 94,108 older women again with an 18 year follow-up.
3. Nurses’ Health Study II – which involved 101,837 younger women with a 14 year follow-up.
The diets of the individuals were scored on eight components:
1. high intake of fruits
2. high intake of vegetables
3. high intake of nuts and legumes
4. high intake of low-fat dairy products
5. high intake of whole grains
6. low intake of sodium,
7. low intake of sweetened beverages
8. low intake of red and processed meats.
Over a combined 50 yr of follow-up, 5645 incidences of kidney stones were recorded.
Participants with higher DASH scores had higher intakes of calcium, potassium, magnesium, oxalate, and vitamin C and had lower intakes of sodium (salt) than those with low scores. Those participants with the highest DASH scores were between 40-45% less likely to develop kidney stones than those participants with the lowest DASH scores – these results were independent of age, body size, fluid intake, and other factors. The authors of the study conclude that “consumption of a DASH-style diet is associated with a marked decrease in kidney stone risk” (1).
Eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, nuts, low-fat dairy products, and whole grains, while limiting salt, red and processed meats, and sweetened beverages may well be an effective way to ward off kidney stones, but also represents great general advice! Kidney stones are linked to higher rates of high blood pressure (hypertension), diabetes, overweight, and other risk factors for heart disease, so the findings could have considerable health implications. Small conscious steps toward healthy living, like adding an extra portion of vegetables to your day, can soon add up.
(1) Eric N. Taylor EN et al. 2009. DASH-Style Diet Associates with Reduced Risk for Kidney Stones. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology Published ahead of print on August 13, 2009. doi: 10.1681/ASN.2009030276
(2)NHS: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Kidney-stones/Pages/Introduction.aspx?url=Pages/Whatisit.aspx
Written by Ani Kowal
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