What foods have no oxalate?

In this conversation, Jill discusses oxalate and the Kidney Stone Diet. She addresses common misconceptions and fears surrounding oxalate and gives advice on how to eat a wide variety of foods while still managing oxalate levels. Jill emphasizes the importance of getting calcium needs met and highlights the need to focus on other aspects of the Kidney Stone Diet, such as reducing salt and sugar intake.

Takeaways

• Oxalate is often a misunderstood and feared aspect of the Kidney Stone Diet.
• While it’s important to be mindful of high oxalate foods, such as spinach and almonds, the focus should be on getting calcium needs met and reducing salt and sugar intake.
• Eating a wide variety of foods, including meats, dairy, and plant-based options, is possible within the parameters of the kidney Stone Diet.
• Anxiety and fear surrounding the Kidney Stone Diet can be alleviated by seeking reliable information and support.
• By following the guidance provided by Jill, individuals can regain confidence and improve their quality of life.

Sound Bites

• “Oxalate really at the end of the day is the least problematic part of the Kidney Stone Diet.”
• “What I’m trying to do is give you your life back.”

Jeff Sarris (00:22)
Yeah, we’re back at it. We have a frequently asked question. This is so common, so many questions about oxalate. What foods have no oxalate? That’s where we’re starting the day, but we might go in a direction that people don’t expect.

Jill Harris
My goodness, yep. Yep, yep.

So I think it’s a great question. So what foods have zero oxalate? And there’s a list of them. Basically, you’re going to have all your meats. And people, meat is also chicken and fish. So that just goes under all of it. Whenever I say the word meat, people are like, Jill, I don’t eat red meat. Well, chicken, turkey, that’s all meat. That goes under the meat category. And then yes, there’s fish. So those proteins. Red meat, chicken, turkey, beef, poultry, all that, all that.

Fish, no oxalate. Milk, cheeses, yogurt, ice cream, sour cream, so get it, dairy, no oxalate. Eggs, no oxalate. So there’s categories of food that have zero oxalate.

Well Jill, that’s what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna eat all the eggs and beef I can eat so I have no oxalate. I want you guys to understand this. Most of you, when you get your kidney stone, some of you, not most of you, some of you had high oxalate. Some of you, I had a patient today that their oxalate level was over 100. And lately I’ve had a lot.

These are people who are overeating spinach, almonds, the highest oxalate foods on a daily basis without any calcium. In my 25 year career, I’ve probably had 10 patients out of the thousands and thousands of patients I’ve had over 100 of oxalate. I’ve never seen oxalate dumping. I’m not saying it doesn’t exist. I’ve never seen it. You know, their oxalate levels run normally. 40-50 and we want it under 30. That’s where we want it.

So oxalate really at the end of the day is the least problematic part of the Kidney Stone Diet. It’s all the salt and sugar you guys are eating and by the way the meat protein which again has no oxalate but it’s causing issues in other areas and that’s an abundance of meat not just having a little bit of meat a carnivore diet, paleo diet where you’re eating as much as you want.

So where this is going to turn a little is people come to me frantic about Oxalate. People come to me saying that they will never travel again. People come to me saying, I’m never going out to eat again. My wife is so upset with me because we’re not socializing anymore. I have lost 30 pounds and I don’t have the weight to lose. They come to me with so much about oxalate and honestly oxalate is so little of this problem once you stop overeating the highest oxalate foods, spinach, almonds, cashews, you know the highest oxalate ones and not getting your calcium needs met.

So what I’m seeing is a lot of hoopla over something that is not the issue once you stop eating that way, meaning the same five foods that are super high in oxalate over and over again with no calcium. Everybody here can have 100 milligrams of oxalate a day. It’s not a problem. Get your calcium needs met. If you are to be hyper -villagent about, is that how you say it? Villagent? Villager? Diligent? No, that’s wrong. Hyper-villagent? Villagent?

Jeff Sarris
I think diligent.

Jill Harris
I don’t know people, if you’re getting all freaked out about oxalate, what the hell. If you’re getting all, don’t. I want you to freak out about salt and added sugar. Because there’s so much, I want you to get freaked out about the fluids. So take away your almonds and spinach, get your calcium needs met, stop eating cashews all day long, don’t be eating rhubarb all day long, those kinds of things.

Pay attention to the other goals of the Kidney Stone Diet® which you can find at kidneystonediet.com. The oxalate causes so much issue because you don’t know where to turn to get the right information because everybody has a different list and everybody has different information. Stick with what I’m saying not because I think I’m the queen of the world because what I do has worked for thousands of people for a very long time and it’s not about any list.

It’s about how you eat—not overeating the same foods every single day in any amount you want and getting your calcium needs met. So we eat a wide variety of food, the things that have a little bit higher oxalate, you can have it, just pay mind to it and maybe you want to pair your calcium with that. But people are giving up their social life, they are, and this is not dramatic, me being dramatic, this is what I’m listening to all day long.

They don’t go on airplanes anymore because they’re petrified that they have current stones and they may move. They’re petrified of they stop eating so much food unnecessarily because they have stones inside of them and they don’t want them to grow. This is not how we deal with this. There is nothing you have to worry about oxalate. You just follow the instructions I give on all the videos on this channel. There’s many on oxalate. Go watch them please. Watch them now.

What I’m trying to do is give you your life back. Because many of you are living not properly as far as you’re just so fear -based with everything. And that’s not your fault. Here’s why you feel that way. And I know that because you tell me. The pain that you have suffered, the stent that you had that caused an infection, and caused a really bad infection, the pain of the stent, losing time off work, which means you lose money. And then a lot of doctors don’t know how to help you, so you start Googling things and everybody tells you different stuff. So of course you’re anxious, of course you’re confused, and you’re like, the hell with this, I’d rather not eat. Because you’re so frustrated and fearful. But I’m trying, this is why I love what I do, because I’m going to give you your life back. If you listen to what we talk about on this channel, you will get your life back.

Think about joining the group accountability call so you can listen to real life people, what they’ve gone through and how they’re managing everything. So it’s a support group in general for kidney stone patients. But the point is, this isn’t about oxalate once you take away the highest oxalate foods. I’m giving you your life back, more food on your plate, more confidence, more chillness.

So you don’t have to worry so much. Vacations back. I can’t tell you how many people have issues with their spouse because the spouse is like, you’re being a pain in the ass. We can’t do nothing anymore. The spouse thinks they’re nuts and there’s a lot of rift between couples. And you know, you’re curtailing your spouse’s social life, vacation life too. So I mean, you know, it affects a lot of people in your family.

And so we who have had illness in our life and I’ve been there so I know what I’m talking about. We get obsessed and we get not just so obsessed, yes, but also consumed by the illness. We get consumed by it because we’re petrified of going through it again. But I promise you, if you go to kidneystonediet.com look at the blog. If you stay on the YouTube channel and start binging these videos that we put out for you.

Please do. What you’ll find in them is real life help from somebody who’s had a shitload of experience. And also, you’ll get your life back. So you’ll feel a little bit better. You’ll be able to have a wide variety of foods. And you vegans who have started now eating meat or dairy, you’re going to find out you don’t have to do that. You just have to reign in some of the things you’re doing.

My vegans stay vegan. My vegetarians stay vegetarian. I mean, it’s not a problem. You can do any diet you want as long as you stay within the parameters of the Kidney Stone Diet goals at kidneystonediet.com. But I promise you guys, stay here, watch the videos that we put out for you, get your life back. And although I know that sounds a little over the top, again, it’s what I’m hearing every day, what people are going through. And there’s no need for it. I understand why it is, but I promise you, you will feel better once you start watching the videos on this channel. I guarantee it.

Work with me, don’t work with me. We put out plenty of free stuff. The Oxalate, join the meal plan. I figured out every Oxalate value for every recipe in that meal plan. You get breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, ideas and inspirations. All the Oxalate’s right there. So you never have to worry about that again. And guess what? The food’s easy and delicious. It’s food I eat. Jill, what do you do to keep your figure? Well, this is all the stuff I eat. What do you think I’m throwing it out after I make it? I eat this.

So and you’ll just I think the biggest thing is from this video is I want people to get their confidence back. I want people to feel better about their lifestyle. I don’t want people to feel so deprived. There’s plenty of foods that don’t have oxalate but even the foods that do, eat a wide variety of those things. Just don’t overeat them and get your calcium needs met every day. Go listen to the videos that we have on this channel about Oxlate and you’ll get everything you need for free. For free. For free.

Jeff Sarris
25 years as a kidney stone prevention nurse, thousands of patients, 199 episodes of this podcast, weekly email newsletter, you can subscribe to a kidneystonediet.com. You can get all of Jill’s knowledge and experience in your ears, visually through email, whatever you want at kidneystonediet.com. I think that’s a great spot to wrap. So thanks so much for tuning in and we’ll see you next week.

Jill Harris
Bye everybody.