Kidney stones can not only cause pain and irritation in your bladder and urine pathways, but it can also cause pain in the joints as well.
There are about three major types of kidney stones and they are calcium oxalate stones, calcium phosphate stones, and uric acid stones.
Out of these three types, calcium oxalate stones are the most common making up for about 59 percent. Calcium phosphate stones make up for 10 percent, and uric acid stones make up for 17 percent of the occurrence.
What are the reasons for the formation of kidney stones?
Kidney stones develop due to five major reasons and they are as follows.
Lower Levels of Fluids
This is one of the major reasons why most people develop kidney stones. They do not consume enough fluids. Our busy lifestyle is probably the major contributing factor for this reason. We simply forget to drink enough water. While health experts recommend drinking at least two to three liters of water per day, most of us just don’t fulfill this need.
Low fluid intake leads to a decrease in the amount of urine expelled and this greatly increases your chances for developing kidney stones.
High Levels of Oxalate intake
Doctors recommend consuming about 50 mg of oxalate per day. However, an average person in the United States consumes about 200 to 300 mg of oxalate per day.
When your body has high levels of oxalate, it combines with calcium and produces these razor sharp calcium oxalate crystals that not only irritates your bladder, it also causes pain in the joints.
Why do we have a high amount of oxalate? Its because most of our favorite foods have it. Some of the popular ones include potato chips, french fries, nuts, nut butter, parsley, spinach, beets, etc…
To reduce the risk of developing kidney stones, you need to reduce the intake of foods rich in oxalate.
Body Being Too Acidic
While it is good for your body to be acidic as it helps with the absorption of nutrients, when it gets highly acidic it can trigger the formation of uric acid crystals or uric acid stones. If your urine is found to be too acidic then you need to take measures to neutralize the acidic levels in your body.
High levels of calcium in the blood
Your joints and bones need calcium. However when you have high levels of calcium in your blood along with high levels of oxalate, then it calcium easily combines with the excessive oxalate and forms calcium oxalate crystals.
Low Levels of Citrate
When your body has enough amount of citrates, it not only inhibits the formation of the stones but also dissolves the existing stones and helps it to be expelled through your urine. Additionally, citrates will reduce the stickiness of the stones and prevent it from sticking to the surface of the kidneys and bladder.
Naturally, when your body runs short of citrates, it directly increases your chance of developing kidney stones.
How do lemons help with kidney stones?
- It is a rich source of citrates, which inhibits the formation of kidney stones and also dissolves the existing ones.
- It will alkalize your urine. It might sound strange because we know that lemons are acidic and contain citric acid, it becomes alkaline once it burns in the body. This means it will inhibit the formation of uric acid crystals.
- It will lower the amount of calcium in the blood and reduce the probability of formation of calcium oxalate crystals.
- It is low on fructose. Higher levels of fructose can also increase the risk of developing uric acid stones.
How to use Lemon Juice for Kidney stones?
Squeeze about 1 cup of fresh lemon juice or lime juice directly from the organic fruit and drink the juice directly without adding any water. You can chase it up with a little water to clean your mouth and teeth afterward.
Secondly, squeeze 1 cup of lemon juice and add 10 cups of water to it and drink it throughout the day in small portions. By drinking it throughout the day, you make sure your body has enough citrates throughout the day to inhibit the formation of kidney stones.
There are some conflicting research studies that claim vitamin-C can worsen the kidney stones. However, these studies are done using the synthetic form of vitamin-C and not the type of Vitamin-C naturally found in foods and lemons.
While trying out this remedy, make sure the lemons or lime you use is of organic type and not the ones that contain pesticides.
