How Your Healthy Diet Caused Your Kidney Stones

Most of my patients come to me saying…

“I finally started eating healthy, I lost 63 pounds, and then I got a stone.”

Now what?

It can be very frustrating to realize your “healthy” diet is the reason you made a kidney stone. I often find my job as a kidney stone prevention educator consists of helping people bring healthy foods back into their diet in a safe and enjoyable way.

What Can I Eat?

Patients are overwhelmed and scared by the time they find me. Once they learn that healthy plant foods have caused their stones, they cut out all fruits and veggies. Many patients tell me they have nothing to eat. Well I am here to tell you– you have plenty to eat.

What is the best Oxalate List?

Dr. Coe and I rely on the Harvard oxalate list as a source because it has worked for our patients for many years. However, you need to know HOW to use the list to effectively in order to lower the quantity of high oxalate food you eat. It can be quite challenging to do this and simultaneously incorporate all the other advice we give you.

Portion Size Is Key

Even with healthy foods we need to watch our portions. Just because almonds are the latest healthy food, that doesn’t mean we should be eating them all day long. I can’t tell you how many of my male clients say, “I was just eating a few handfuls here and there”. Guys, look at the size of your hands. They can hold a ton of almonds. And all those almonds happen to be very high in oxalate.

Ladies, how much spinach are you putting in your salads? Spinach might be called a superfood but that doesn’t mean eating 7 cups a day of spinach is super for you.

If you really watch your portion size on higher oxalate foods, you can bring some of those foods back into your diet. I do recommend patients eliminate spinach and substitute kale because spinach is just too high in oxalate. I also tell patients to substitute pistachio nuts and sunflower seeds for almonds, another high oxalate food. Even with lower oxalate substitutions, it is important to watch portions on these lower oxalate nuts. If you come to my classes, you will learn all about the portions that are right for you.

Eat Healthy Without Raising Your Oxalate

You can keep eating healthy. You just need to learn how to do incorporate fruits and veggies into your diet without raising your oxalate levels. This is why Dr. Coe and I started The Kidney Stone Prevention Course. In the course, you will learn how to bring back your favorite healthy foods – without increasing your oxalate level. I have had patients with oxalate levels well over 100. After they took the course, they lowered their oxalate levels into the 20’s. Read how a private client of mine lowered her oxalate from the 120’s to 29. Her vegan lifestyle brought about her stones, but with careful planning she has maintained her vegan diet and lowered her oxalate. She did it and you can too!