A diet designed to prevent high blood pressure reduces the risk of developing kidney stones, a new study has found.
A diet designed to prevent high blood pressure reduces the risk of developing kidney stones, a new study has found. The results suggest how low-fat dairy products and/or plants may have potent kidney stone-fighting properties.
The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet-which is high in fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes, dairy products, and whole grains and is low in sweetened beverages and red and processed meats-effectively lowers blood pressure.
Research by Eric Taylor, MD (Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Maine Medical Center) and his colleagues also now suggests that a DASH-style diet reduces one's risk of developing kidney stones.
The investigators studied 24-hour urine samples of 3426 individuals with and without a history of kidney stones in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS) and the Nurses' Health Studies (NHS) I and II. The study participants were part of a previous, larger study where Dr.
Taylor reported that a DASH-style diet was associated with a reduced risk of kidney stone formation. HPFS and NHS I and II are large studies of the lifestyle practices and health of both male and female health care workers.
Individuals who followed a DASH-style diet excreted more urine than individuals who did not follow the diet, despite similar fluid intake. The researchers speculate that higher urinary volumes were, at least partly, a result of the higher food water content in a DASH-style diet.
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Dr. Taylor's data suggest that a DASH-style diet could be important for keeping stones from reappearing in people who suffer from them.
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The study appears in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN).
Source-ANI