Kidney stones and grit: prevent and treat them naturally

The kidneys are the organ responsible for filter and remove waste substances and excess body fluids. One of the most common conditions of the kidneys is renal lithiasis or formation of grit and stones or kidney stones. Some measures such as drinking plenty of fluids and phytotherapy as a natural treatment can be of great help when it comes to preventing it and avoiding the dreaded, painful renal colic.

Discover in this video the herbal tea that helps eliminate kidney stones.

Grit or kidney stones: what they are and how they are formed

Grit and stones are formed when, through the fine terminal pipes of the urinary system, liquids loaded with certain substances, especially calcium, are eliminated.

In fact, kidney stones are usually calcium and they are deposited just like calcifications, like in the washing machine. Up to 12% of people have or will have kidney stones or grit at some point in their lives. In general, it seems common for people who drink little water to suffer from it.

This formation of grit and stones in the kidney is known as lithiasis. They form usually in the renal cavity or pelvis, and there they grow for years or even decades. At first they are very small: a grit forms in the kidney, which usually remains stationary. But then those grains of sand can grow and, as they grow, form what we call kidney stones or stones.

The causes of calculi There are many and they depend on the type: some are due to dietary excesses, others due to kidney deficiency, and some due to genetic causes. In fact, it is speculated that the decisive thing is genetics, but the stones they occur more in sedentary people and who take a lot of calcium, drink little or sweat excessivelywhich in the end is the same for the kidney.

Symptoms of grit and kidney stones

There comes a time when kidney stones can reach a size that makes it impossible to eject through the fine ureteral ducts without suffering renal colic.

Therein lies the main difference between calculus and grita: in the size and symptoms they cause.

The grit usually produces a pain or dull ache in the kidney area, without colic characteristics, and can be eliminated little by little. Instead, the stones can obstruct the passage of urine and dilate the urinary tract. When the body tries to expel them, since they cannot fit through the tubes that go from the kidney to the bladder, can cause colic. Colic is characterized by an abrupt and sharp pain, which can occur higher or lower depending on the point at which the stone is causing the obstruction.

Not all kidney stones are the same. According to its composition, we can establish different types of kidney stones. Knowing what type of stones you have can help you prevent them and refine the treatment:

• Calcium phosphate: They are very common and can improve with diuretic plants and by reducing foods rich in calcium (especially dairy) and soft drinks (rich in phosphates).

• Calcium oxalate: Their edges make them very painful, especially if they grow, and they are the most frequent.

• From urate: Due to excessive consumption of animal protein or kidney failure, they account for 10% of kidney stones. They are formed mainly with acid urine.

• Magnesium ammonium phosphate or struvite: They are stones often caused by recurrent kidney infections.

• From cystine: Rarely, they are linked to a metabolic defect.

Depending on the type of calculus, the diet will have to be individualized. Of course, most have calcium and all benefit from drinking more fluids.

How to prevent and get rid of kidney stones and grit

Drinking plenty of fluids is the best prevention. Water, with low mineralization, is the most important diuretic and herbal teas are your allies. If you have a tendency to produce grit or kidney stones, or already have them, follow these tips:

Drink at least 2 liters a day of low mineralization water, more in case of colic or renal discomfort. Diuretic and antispastic infusions are also ideal.Take the juice of one or two lemons a day regularly or seasonally. It can be useful, especially in phosphate and oxalate stones. Urate, cystine, or oxalate stones increase in acid urine; not so those of phosphate. However, all of them benefit from the consumption of citrates present in lemon juice, which regulate urinary pH and favor the solubility of calcium salts in the urine.Reduce the consumption of foods rich in calcium (especially dairy).If you have urate stonesalso sausages, meat, seafood and concentrated proteins.If they are oxalateAlso reduce these vegetables: spinach, chard, beets, cocoa, rhubarb, tomato, pistachios and peanuts.A good vegetable broth tIt provides liquids and, if you do it with a lot of celery, leeks and onions, you increase its diuretic power. Put little or no salt, as it retains fluids and reduces urination.Take 1 or 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar a day, with food or diluted in water. It gives you citrates.Magnesium helps solubilize grit, especially if it is taken in the form of magnesium citrate: 200 mg a day for one or two months, once or twice a year. It can prevent the formation of calcium stones.Includes plenty of raw, stewed or boiled parsley on your plates. Both the leaves and the seeds are used, whose diuretic action, similar to that of celery, is due to its apiol and flavones.

4 very useful diuretic plants

In addition, these four plants with a diuretic effect may be useful:

buchu (barosma betulina): This South African plant is purely diuretic. The leaves are taken as an infusion, alone or combined with bearberry, horsetail or corn stigmas.Dandelion (Taraxacum dens leonis): The root is used, and also the young leaves in salads. It is very diuretic, useful against gallstones and kidney stones, edema and fluid retention.bean pod (Phaseolus vulgaris): The dried pod of the bean, diuretic and glucose regulator, are used. Boiled green beans also help you: eat it and use the cooking broth.bearberry (Arctostaphyllos uva-ursi): Its leaves are rich in hydroquinone glycosides, with urinary antiseptic and diuretic action. It gives a slightly dark color to the urine.