Apples, Fruit Defeat Kidney Stone Formation

Fruit-Rich Diet Protects Against Developing Painful Renal Stones

Aug 31, 2009 Sue Cartledge

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables, and low in fat, salt and red meat, has been shown to reduce the risk of people developing the painful condition of kidney stones.

It seems the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) Diet is almost as beneficial to health as the Mediterranean diet, which isn’t surprising, as they are very similar.

The DASH diet is high in fruits and vegetables, nuts and legumes, low-fat dairy products and whole grains, and low in salt, sweetened beverages, and red and processed meats.

It has been credited with lowering blood pressure, lowering levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol, and reducing the risk of heart failure. Now it seems, the DASH diet can ward off kidney stones as well.

Kidney Stones Linked to Hypertension, Diabetes

Because the risk factors for kidney stones are similar to those for diabetes, hypertension and increased weight, Dr Eric Taylor, from Maine Medical Center Teaching Hospital, in Portland, Maine, and his colleagues at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, conducted a large, longitudinal study to see if healthy eating had any effect on the formation of kidney stones.

The researchers looked at the eating habits of three groups of participants in ongoing clinical trials – those in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (45,821 men followed for 18 years), the Nurses' Health Study I (94,108 older women followed for 18 years), and the Nurses' Health Study II (101,837 younger women followed for 14 years).

DASH Diet Scores High in Calcium, Vitamin C

Participants in the clinical studies were scored on each item of the DASH diet they regularly consumed or avoided.

The participants received scores for their high consumption of fruit and vegetables and low fat dairy products, high intakes of whole grains, nuts and legumes.

They were also scored on their reduced intake of salt, sweetened beverages, and red and processed meats.

The diets of individuals with high DASH scores were found to be rich in calcium, potassium, magnesium, oxalate, and vitamin C and low in sodium.

DASH Diet Wards off Kidney Stones

The men and women in the three clinical studies were followed for a combined total of 50 years.

During this time, only 5,645 kidney stones developed in a total group of nearly 242,000 people.

In each study – men, older women and younger women – the people with the highest DASH diet score were 40 per cent less likely to develop kidney stones than the people with the lowest DASH diet scores.

Healthy People Benefit from DASH Diet too

Because it was already known that the DASH diet can affect hypertension, diabetes and other chronic conditions associated with developing kidney stones, Dr Taylor and his colleagues decided to look at healthy people without hypertension or diabetes.

Here again, the people with the highest DASH diet scores reduced their likely risk of developing kidney stones more than those with the lowest scores.

Diet may be Way to Treat Kidney Stones

Dr Taylor said these results were encouraging for sufferers of kidney stones, which can be very painful.

Many of the medications used to treat kidney stones have unpleasant side effects, he said in his paper, "DASH-Style Diet Associates with Reduced Risk for Kidney Stones," which was published online at Journal of the American Society Nephrology on August 13, 2009.

“Consumption of a DASH-style diet is associated with a marked decrease in kidney stone risk," Dr Taylor wrote.

“This study indicates that adopting a DASH-style diet may be an effective alternative to unpleasant medications.”

For more on the benefits of the DASH Diet, see Eat the DASH Diet for a Healthy Heart and DASH Diet Helps Women’s Heart Health.

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The copyright of the article Apples, Fruit Defeat Kidney Stone Formation in General Medicine is owned by Sue Cartledge. Permission to republish Apples, Fruit Defeat Kidney Stone Formation in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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