Best Natural Remedies for Kidney Stones and How to Prevent a Reoccurrence

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If you have ever had a kidney stone, then you already know just how painful they can be, especially once the stone gets caught in the tubes which lead from the kidneys to the bladder. Once inside the bladder, the stone must travel through the urethra and out of the body. Men, naturally having a longer urethra, have a much more difficult time with stones, leading some doctors to call it “male childbirth.”

What exactly is a kidney stone?

Stones that form in the kidneys are made up of mineral deposits, and the minerals can vary, but most of them are made of a type of calcium called calcium oxalate. Excess consumption of calcium or oxalates collects in the kidneys and form small pebbles that resemble stones within the kidneys. Stones can stay in your kidneys for weeks, months, and sometimes even years with no symptoms. However, should the stone become lodged at any point; a person can have extreme, even debilitating back or flank pain.

Most doctors will give you some type of pain killer combined with a great deal of water to help you pass the stone naturally. Some stones, however, are too large to pass through and will need to be removed surgically.

Want to avoid all this? There are several home remedies that will help dissolve stones or help to prevent them from forming in the first place. Keep reading and find out how you can more easily pass a stone and never have those painful episodes again.

1. Maple Syrup and Olive Oil

Eating plenty of citrus fruit is a great way to pass stones, as it raises the acidity of your urine and dissolves the calcium in the stone. Parsley root is a natural diuretic which will help flush out the stone.

Ingredients

1 Cup pure maple syrup (not pancake syrup)
9 Ounces extra virgin olive oil
9 Ounces organic lemon, including the peel
9 Ounces parsley root
9 Ounces raw, organic honey

Instructions

Cut the lemon into small pieces, leaving the peel on it. Place in your blender and mix it up well.
Wash and scrape the parsley root, then cut it into chunks. Add it to the lemon in the blender and mix them together.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix until you get a well-blended mixture. Store in a glass jar with a lid. Keep the jar in your refrigerator.
Take one tablespoon each morning on an empty stomach. Then be certain to drink at least 8 eight ounce glasses of water during the day.

2. Basil

Basil tea is often recommended as a tonic for the kidneys. You can drink basil tea a few times during the day for overall kidney health. If you have a kidney stone, take one teaspoon of basil juice mixed with one teaspoon of raw, organic honey every morning until the stone passes.

3. Magnesium

Several studies show that people with recurrent stones who began a program of daily magnesium supplements has a 92.3 percent improvement rate in the reduction, as well as the reoccurrence, of kidney stones. 300mg of magnesium orotate each day appears to work to reduce and prevent kidney stones.

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4. Pomegranate Juice

You might have heard that pomegranate juice has numerous health benefits, but one of the things you might not know is that pomegranate juice is a natural remedy for dissolving kidney stones. This might be related to their acidic nature and astringent properties. Be sure you drink freshly squeezed pomegranate juice, not some high fructose corn syrup flavored with a bit of juice.

5. Lemon Juice and Apple Cider Vinegar Mix

This is one of the most effective home remedies for kidney stones. At the very first sign of pain, or if your doctor has told you that you have kidney stones, mix 2 ounces of extra virgin olive oil with 2 ounces of organic lemon juice. Mix well and drink it straight down. Follow up with a 12 ounce glass of pure water. Wait for 30 minutes.

Then squeeze the juice of ½ of an organic lemon and 1 tablespoon of organic raw apple cider vinegar into 12 ounce into another 12 ounce glass of water and drink it immediately. Wait another 30 minutes.

Repeat the mixture of the lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and water mixture every hour until your pain lessens or until the stone is passed.

6. Uva Ursi

Uva Ursi is an herb with an old history of being a remedy for kidney stones. It will help fight infection in the kidneys, and might help to reduce the pain. 500mg three times per day is the usual dosage, to be taken until the stone is passed.

7. Dandelion Root

This is another old home remedy for the kidneys. Dandelion root has been used as a kidney tonic and cleanser for hundreds of years. 500mg twice per day is the usual recommended dose.

8. Horsetail

Horsetail tea is an effective remedy for dissolving kidney stones. Drink 3 to 4 cups of horsetail tea each day or take 2grams in a capsule form daily until the stone is passed. Find out more benefits and uses of horsetail.

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Kidney stones tend to run in families and are more common in men than women. However, once you have developed a problematic kidney stone, chances are good that you will have a reoccurrence. If you have had a kidney stone in the past, or if you think you might be a good candidate for developing a kidney stone, you might want to try some of the remedies below for preventing the formation of stones.

1. Cut Back on the C

Although it’s true that vitamin C is vital for the immune system, in very high doses (more than 3,000mg daily) it can become a problem for those who tend to get stones. Your body converts vitamin C to oxalate, which is part of what makes up kidney stones. Try to get your daily vitamin C from foods and not from supplements. Vitamin C is essential to the body, so don’t go without it, but the recommendation of 90mg per day for men and 75 mg for women are a bit low. Consuming 500mg of vitamin C daily is a good recommendation to avoid stones, but still give your body the vitamin C it needs.

2. Cut Back on Oxalates

Although eating plenty of fruits and vegetables is vital for good health, some produce gives your body too many oxalates, which can form stones.

If you have a tendency to get kidney stones, cut back on coffee, beets, nuts, peanuts, spinach, tea, strawberries, rhubarb, and chocolate.

3. Drink Plenty of Water

Sometimes the only thing people need to do to pass stones and to keep them from forming is to drink plenty of water. 8 eight ounce glasses of water is the minimum you should drink each day, and 10 to 12 glasses if you can manage it would be even better. Read more which water you should drink.

4. Eat Less Meat

If you have passed a kidney stone and your doctor told you that it was made of uric acid, this is probably due to a high protein diet. Animal protein speeds the formation of uric acid and calcium in the urine, which can cause stones to form in the kidneys. You don’t have to stop eating meat, just moderate your consumption.

5. Nettle Leaf Tea

Nettle leaf has a long history of being a safe and natural diuretic. When fluid is flowing through the kidneys and bladders, nettle can help stop crystals from forming into stones. Nettle tea also helps to keep a healthy balance of electrolytes in the urine, which stops minerals from clumping together into stones. Two or three cups of nettle tea each day can help prevent kidney stones.

Be sure you include plenty of exercise in your normal routine. Exercise helps move calcium out of the bloodstream and into your bones, rather than into your kidneys to form stones.

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