This conversation explores the implications of gluten-free diets, particularly in relation to kidney health. Jill Harris discusses how gluten-free diets often lead to the overconsumption of high-oxalate foods, such as almond flour, which can increase the risk of kidney stones. The discussion also highlights the importance of reading nutrition labels, as many gluten-free products contain high levels of sodium and sugar, which can further exacerbate kidney stone risks. The conversation emphasizes that a gluten-free diet does not automatically equate to a healthy diet and encourages listeners to be mindful of their food choices.
Takeaways
- Gluten-free diets can lead to kidney stone formation.
- Almond flour is high in oxalate and should be consumed cautiously.
- Many gluten-free products contain high levels of sodium and sugar.
- It’s essential to read nutrition labels on gluten-free products.
- A gluten-free diet doesn’t guarantee a healthy diet.
- Overeating high-oxalate foods can increase kidney stone risk.
- Consumers should be aware of food companies’ marketing strategies.
- Dietary choices should focus on overall health, not just gluten-free status.
- Portion control is crucial when consuming gluten-free products.
- Choosing gluten-free products with lower sodium is advisable.
00:00 Introduction to Gluten-Free Diets and Kidney Stones
00:36 Understanding Celiac Disease and Misconceptions
03:19 The Impact of Gluten-Free Flours on Kidney Stones
06:30 Sodium and Sugar in Gluten-Free Products
09:28 Consumer Awareness and Food Industry Practices
Jeff Sarris (00:00)
Gluten-free diets are so popular, but don’t start a gluten-free diet until you hear this.
Jill Harris (00:07)
Why do we care about gluten-free diets in the kidney stone world? Well, when you are gluten-free, you are using flours that are, they’re nut-based typically, so you’re not eating wheat and have GI upset because of that or flare-ups. So you’re eating almond flour. Number one thing, lots and lots of almond products, because that works for baking.
and for bread, stuff like that. you know, people don’t want to give up flour in general. And we do have a YouTube video about gluten-free flours. So a lot of patients who have formed kidney stones, it’s because they were overusing almond flour. So common.
Jeff Sarris (00:54)
Yeah, in case someone doesn’t know too, yeah, how does that play into it?
Jill Harris (00:58)
Yes, when we eat, almonds are very high in oxalate. So they’re so high in oxalate that I do take them away because who the hell has ever said, honey, go get the bag of, you know what, just give me one almond. No one ever does that. You want some almonds if you’re gonna go get some almonds. You want a few handfuls of them. Otherwise there’s no point in bringing them to the couch. So almonds are very high in oxalate.
And when we have really high oxalate foods over and over and over, along with not getting any calcium in our diet, we can get kidney stones from that. So a lot of gluten-free people are overeating high oxalate foods. That’s one thing. The other thing, when you’re buying gluten-free, I’m going to use bread as an example.
When you’re buying gluten-free products like bread, they’re taking the gluten out of the product. Gluten makes breads chewy, gives a nice consistency, and people really like that. Once you take gluten out, food starts tasting like cardboard. So they want to doctor up the taste and feel from these products that the gluten has been removed from.
with things like more sugar and more salt. So when you’re getting your special gluten free bread at the grocery store, please pay attention and see how much sodium is in each slice because too much sodium, also added sugar, too much added sugar and too much sodium can make you have, can pull calcium from your bone and dump it into the urine and this is another kidney stone risk.
So many patients will say, Jill, I’m eating healthy, I’m gluten free, and I’ll say, go get your bread. Go get your bread, Polly. Get it out. Okay, I got it out. Turn it around, bust it brown. Look at the nutrition label. What, Jill, what? Look at the sodium. my God. There’s 250 milligrams of sodium in one slice of bread. And I’m having a sandwich, Jill. And also I’m having toast for breakfast.
So he’s eating hundreds of milligrams of sodium just in four pieces of bread a day. Forget about sodium and everything else and remember, too much sodium can pull calcium from your bone and dump it into your urine. Also, too much sodium can lower urine volume. You feel bloated when you eat an out-to-eat meal? That’s because you’re retaining water from all the sodium and added sugar you just had. So, in…
the simplest terms possible when we eat too much sodium as we do in gluten-free diets. Many of you do. You will pee less, which can also increase your saturations, your urine saturations, and make you more prone to kidney stones. Think about it. If you pee less, you’re not constantly on regular basis getting rid of all these crystals. Now they’re accumulating in the urine that you’re holding in.
because you ate too much salt. Added sugar actually works the same way. When we eat too much added sugar, that also will lower urine volume. So you pee less. And that’s again why we’re walking around so bloated. So it’s very important to know that a gluten-free diet doesn’t mean you’re eating healthy. And many people are just going and have been on a gluten-free diet
just because they think that’s a healthier way to eat without looking at nutrition labels, without even needing the products because they don’t have celiac disease. So I want you to understand that gluten-free, if you’re not paying attention, can really increase your kidney stone rest. So it’s super important. So if you don’t need to be gluten-free, don’t. Watch your salt in any breads, by the way.
People will say, Jill, how should I choose bread? I want you to pay attention to the salt and added sugar in bread. I’d also like you to pay attention to the amount of fiber in your bread. Choose pieces of bread or slices of bread that have at least three grams of fiber in it. That’s awesome. And then people will say, but watch the salt in it. And then also people will say, well, wheat is high in oxalate.
And that’s also why I went gluten free, Jill, because I figured I’ll go wheat free because, you know, there’s a lot of oxalate in wheat. Yeah, but Harvard, which is the oxalate list found on my website, a cup of wheat is high in oxalate. There ain’t a cup of wheat in a piece of bread, folks. So get your mind around that, too. It’s always about portion not perfection.
It’s not about you can’t ever have wheat again. It’s just, you you may not want to have two cups of wheat a day, which no one’s doing. There’s just a little bit of wheat in that slice of bread. So kind of all over the place. the point is a gluten-free diet for any of you who just happened to click on this and you’re just going gluten-free and don’t even have a kidney stone doesn’t mean it’s the healthiest diet in the world. Choose gluten-free diet products that are lower in sodium if you can find them.
And also for kidney stone formers specifically, but for all of you, pay attention to all the sodium inated sugar that they’re putting in these gluten-free products. And choose the gluten-free products, if you actually need that, that are lower in sodium. Does that make sense, Jeff?
Jeff Sarris (06:46)
yeah, it absolutely does. Yeah. And like, do know I’ve been gluten-free for a long time, but I’m not big on products.
Jill Harris (06:50)
Yes.
Jeff Sarris (06:52)
I’m very much about the outside of the store. have your meats and veggies and fruits. And I think that’s also something to consider too, if we’re going gluten-free, even if it’s just from a health perspective, are we just sort of doing the cliche of the, what is it? Oreos and Doritos vegan, where it’s like, I went vegan and all I eat are vegan Doritos and vegan Oreos. Like that’s not really more healthy. It’s just a shift. So the same thing applies to gluten-free is are we merely
Jill Harris (06:56)
Yes.
Yes.
Exactly.
Jeff Sarris (07:23)
doing this but shifting everything to also foods that aren’t sustaining for our like for our health for overall health and well-being.
Jill Harris (07:32)
couldn’t agree more and it brings up the topic. When we as consumers start buying stuff, don’t think these food companies don’t notice. Hey, Henry, these folks in the grocery store, they’re all doing keto. This is a few years ago. People have slacked off on keto, which is fine by me because it can also bring on a lot of kidney stones the way people are choosing to do it. But don’t think that these, yeah, right.
Jeff Sarris (07:58)
And we have a video for that too.
Jill Harris (08:01)
So don’t think that people, that the food companies don’t notice. When keto went big, one thing it did teach us, get rid of sugar. So people started demanding products that had very, very low sugar. By the way, what’d they do with those products? They started up in the salt and those products, folks. So if you have a salt-free product, they’re gonna add sugar to it. If you have a sugar-free product, you can bet your sweet Bippy there’s more sodium because remember,
The food companies want us to like the product. So if it’s low sugar, they’re gonna add more salt, because we’ll like it better. Salt is appealing to our tongue and our mouth, okay? So when they take away something, they’re adding in other things that are gonna make us like it. Otherwise, everything starts tasting like notebook paper. That’s why they do that to the breads, because otherwise it is really like cardboard, those breads. But just because something is keto-friendly,
gluten-free friendly all these things doesn’t mean it’s a healthy product and Jeff’s example of lots of vegans are obese simply because they’re They’re eating food that don’t have animal products in it, tons of calories, right? There’s all kinds of vegan products that are very caloric Very salty all kinds of things doesn’t mean it’s healthy and so food people food companies Know what we start buying and then they start making tons of it
And a lot of times these things aren’t the best for us. Very true, right? So you can be gluten free and having a really terrible diet, folks, just so you know. You can be keto also. A lot of extra salt in those products. So I’m just saying, and both of those diets specifically, keto and gluten, very high in the almond products, almond flour, almond milk, right? Low carb diets, all almond, almond, almond. And that’s how people get their kidney stones. All those specialized diets,
makes the bulk of my practice. Let’s just say that, right?
Jeff Sarris (10:02)
Yeah, and if you want another video on the keto diet or other diets, leave a comment down below or go to the Facebook group and leave a public message there, the kidney stone prevention diet. And if you want to dive deep, kidneystonediet.com, you can find the all access pass for everything kidney stone diet related or right on that homepage, Jill breaks down all of the goals for the kidney stone diet, absolutely for free, just to help as many people as you possibly can. But I think with that, we will wrap. Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you next time.
Jill Harris (10:30)
Bye everybody.
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