Kidney Stones

The Natural Connection

My father is one of those guys who just hates to go to the doctor. “See your doctor every five years if you need to or not!” is his personal health care motto. “If you think you’re getting pneumonia, play golf”, is another one.

So when he collapsed pale and sweaty with pain in his left side recently, his friends decided it was time for his five-year check up, and called 911. At the emergency room, he received the “good news” was that his pain was not from a clot advancing towards his brain or his heart, but rather caused by a tiny fleck of calcium that had lodged in his left ureter, the small tube that goes from the kidney to the bladder. He had a kidney stone.

Kidney stones affect about 10% of the population every year, and are more common in men. Patients with kidney stones often suffer intense, abrupt pain that can be associated with waves of nausea. The pain, called renal colic, is caused by stones with little sharp edges obstructing the flow of urine to the bladder. The pain continues until the stone passes into the bladder, or is removed by a physician.

Doctors at Emory University report that kidney stones are more common in the southern United States than in other regions, for reasons not totally understood. Recurrent kidney stones can lead to permanent kidney damage.

A number of hours and a few thousand dollars later, my father was sent home with a bucket of pain pills, a little strainer to filter his urine, and the admonition from his doctor to follow a diet that was low in dietary calcium.

Over 80% of kidney stones are composed of calcium compounds, usually calcium oxalate. Conventional medical wisdom has been to advise patients to limit the amount of calcium in their diets, which could put them at subsequent risk for bone disorders, like osteoporosis.

My father called me to say that he had other plans. “I’ll follow that doctor’s diet as soon as I figure out what to do about Donald Duck.” he said. “Donald Duck? What’s he got to do with it?” I was totally confused.

“Donald Duck Orange Juice with Calcium. Supposed to have just as much calcium as milk. I drink a quart a day. Your mother just bought me a gallon on sale.” I had visions of my father’s speck of a stone fueled by Donald Duck O. J. growing into the size of a mini- Mt. Rushmore. I read once where the largest kidney stone on record was a monstrous four pounds. He would beat that record for sure the way he was going.

“Pops, for once you’d better listen to your doctor. Get rid of that extra calcium and flush The Duck. Switch to cranberry juice or something”. He said OK, which meant that he was going to eat what he wanted to anyway.

Luckily for my father, researchers in Parma, Italy have been looking into this very problem for the past five years. What exactly is the best diet for patients to follow who have had a kidney stone? Their findings were published in the January 10, 2002 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The findings of the Italian team were just the opposite of what physicians have advised patients to do all these past years. One hundred twenty men with a history of kidney stones were followed for five years. One-half of the group were placed on a diet that eliminated milk, yogurt, cheese, and other sources of calcium. The other half followed a diet low in animal protein and salt.

At the end of the study, the men on the low calcium diet had nearly twice as many new stones as those who followed the low salt, low-meat diet. Similar findings have recently been reported in women enrolled in the Nurses’ Health Study, where it was found that diets rich in calcium and potassium, and low in salt and sugar, were associated with fewer stones. Grapefruit juice consumption increased stone formation, while Vitamin B6 supplements decreased them.

This new information means that patients with a history of kidney stones will now be encouraged to consume calcium rich foods, rather than avoid them. For patients using calcium supplements, it is advised that they take them along with food if they have a history of kidney stones.

I called my dad the other day to check on his progress, and to let him know that Donald Duck likely had nothing to do with his recent misfortune. “How’s it going Pops?” Great!” he said. “I’m going to Hawaii next week to play golf”.

But you know”, he said, “ that nurse in the emergency room told me that the pain of having a kidney stone was about as bad as the pain of having a baby. If that’s true, any woman who would have more than one baby is downright crazy!” My mother, who by his definition has “been crazy” five times, was not sympathetic.

For more information about Kidney Stones, write to The Natural Connection, c/o Dr. Pauline Bellecci, PO BOX 777, Waycross, GA 31501, or visit our on-line Patient Education Library at www.swampdocs.com

1-21-2002