• Prevention is key for families with kidney stones

  • Q. My family has a history of kidney stones. What can I do to prevent them?
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    A. I'm glad you're asking now rather than later, as kidney stones can be a painful experience and are hereditary. So your best option is prevention.
    A kidney stone is a buildup of dietary minerals in the urine and are typically classified by their location in the body.
    The four types are calcium, uric acid, struvite and crystine stones. When enough buildup occurs, the stones can grow to 3 millimeters or larger and become an obstruction in the ureter, which makes it extremely painful to urinate. Some symptoms include nausea, vomiting, fever and blood in the urine.
    Although it depends on what sort of stone you have, what you can do before it gets to this point, first and foremost, is drink lots of water. Stick to the eight-glasses-a-day rule of thumb. Staying hydrated helps your body properly flush wastes, which also prevents constipation as well as kidney stones.
    Kidney stones are more prevalent in Western cultures because of a high animal protein diet and are more common in males than in females. Because most of us consume more protein than needed, we form more uric acid, which raises the risk of calcium stones. It will help to limit animal protein to about 6 ounces a day — a serving about the same size as a hockey puck.
    Another thing you can do to prevent kidney stones is to limit your sodium (salt). Pay close attention to how much salt you're using and the sodium content on food labels. Salt causes more calcium to build in urine, which in turn raises the chances of kidney stones.
    Your daily sodium intake should be around 2,300 milligrams. Some foods you might want to stay away from are soda, hot dogs, processed foods, fast foods or canned foods. There are many low-sodium alternatives in the supermarkets today: Just read each label and be cautious of what you're eating.
    In addition, reducing your dietary oxalate will help reduce the formation of calcium stones. Oxalates are naturally occurring chemicals found in animals, humans and plants — including strawberries, spinach and almonds. Consult your physician before changing your diet.
    If you've already had kidney stones, you may want to consult a dietitian to help you create a food plan that will prevent future stones.
    With the right diet and proper care of your body, you can prevent kidney stones and even hereditary predispositions.
    Michael Eufemio, M.D., is certified by the American Board of Urology. Eufemio practices at PMC Physician Associates, Urology Associates of the Poconos, in East Stroudsburg and Tobyhanna.
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