Dealing with kidney stones can be difficult. If you suspect that you are at risk of developing this condition, you want to take preventative measures. But there are many different causes of kidney stones.
To make more sense of the condition, here are the top five kidney stone risk factors you should be aware of:
1. Family History
Kidney stones can be genetic. If people in your family suffer from kidney stones, there is an increased chance you will develop kidney stones. You should get a sense of what kind of stones your family member(s) are dealing with to make adjustments to your health. Approximately 40 percent of people who form kidney stones have a family history for stones.
2. Certain Diets
Diets that are high in sodium, oxalates, or protein can lead to certain kidney stones. Excess consumption of protein leads to high uric acid levels. This leads to uric acid stones. With increased sodium, you will be dealing with higher calcium. This leads to calcium oxalate stones. Calcium oxalate stones can also be caused by the over-consumption of high oxalate foods. Also, the lack of sufficient fluid consumption can cause formation of kidney stones.
3. Obesity
Many research papers have found that there is a link between obesity and kidney stones. While men are at higher risk, obesity also increases the risk for women. The best thing you can do if you are obese is to make better health, diet, and lifestyle choices. Researchers found women who weighed more than 220 pounds were 90% more likely to develop kidney stones than those who weighed less than 150 pounds. Men and women who gained more than 35 pounds since they were 21 years old also had a 39% to 82% higher risk of kidney stones.
4. Digestive Diseases and Operations
Digestive conditions like IBD and Crohn's disease are kidney stone risk factors. IBD affects absorption of calcium and water. Gastric bypass surgery and/or chronic diarrhea can also cause changes in the digestive process that affect your absorption of calcium and water, increasing the amounts of stone-forming substances in your urine. Cronh's disease can lead to higher levels of oxalate. You should ask your doctor if you have any of these challenges, your potential for developing kidney stones and, most importantly, ask for advice on how you can decrease your risk.
5. Diabetes
Diabetes is associated with a higher chance of developing kidney stones. The reason why diabetes creates this condition is because high blood sugar levels lead to your blood being more acidic. The acid levels can lead to the formation of crystals that eventually turn into kidney stones.
These are the biggest risk factors for kidney stones. What you want to do is to see what risk factors you fall into. From there, you want to be proactive about your situation. If you are obese, you want to lose weight by exercising and controlling your diet. If you are consuming a diet that can lead to kidney stones, you want to make adjustments such as drinking more water, preferably with lemon added, and consuming less animal protein, salt, oxalates and sugar.
