Iced Tea's Hidden Risk Of Painful Kidney Stones | Arthritis Information

 

Mark Mulac was once an "avid lover" of iced tea, downing up to six glasses a day of the popular summertime thirst-quencher.

"I was a junkie on a bender. I had to have it every day," said Mulac, a resident of Brookfield, Ill. "Iced tea was very refreshing, cheap to buy and easy to make."

Unfortunately, Mulac was forced to go cold turkey. Iced tea helped to bring on an excruciating bout of kidney stones that led to surgery at Loyola University Hospital in Maywood, Ill.

"The pain was so bad that once it felt like I was delivering a child made out of razor blades," said the 46-year-old Mulac. "I really had no idea that iced tea could lead to that."

Iced tea contains high concentrations of oxalate, one of the key chemicals that lead to the formation of kidney stones, a common disorder of the urinary tract that affects about 10 percent of the population in the United States.

"For many people, iced tea is potentially one of the worst things they can drink," said Dr. John Milner, instructor, department of urology, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, Ill. "For people who have a tendency to form kidney stones, it's definitely one of the worst things you can drink."

Kidney stones are crystals that form in the kidneys or ureters, the small tubes that drain the urine from the kidney to the bladder. Men are four times more likely to develop kidney stones than women, and their risk rises dramatically once they reach their 40s.

The most common cause of kidney stones is the failure to drink enough fluids. During the summer, people are generally more dehydrated due to sweating. The dehydration combined with increase iced tea consumption raises the risk of kidney stones, especially in people who are prone to develop them.

"People are told that in the summertime they should drink more fluids," said Milner, who treated Mulac's kidney stones. "A lot of people choose to drink more iced tea, thinking it's a tastier alternative. However, in terms of kidney stones, they're getting it going and coming. They're actually doing themselves a disservice."

The popularity of iced tea has grown dramatically with a whopping 1.91 billon gallons consumed a year in the U.S., according to the Tea Association of the U.S.A. Nearly 128 Americans drink the beverage daily.

Much of iced tea's appeal is due to the belief that it is healthier than other beverages such as soda and beer.

"I stayed away from carbonated drinks for a long time because I thought it was upsetting my stomach and that it wasn't as good for me, but I guess overdid it with the iced tea," Mulac said.

To quench thirst and to properly hydrate, there is no better alternative than water, Milner said. You might try flavoring it with lemon slices. Lemonade helps to ward off kidney stones.

"Lemons are very high in citrates, which inhibit the growth of kidney stones," Milner said. "Lemonade, not the powdered variety that uses artificial flavoring, actually slows the development of kidney stones for those who are prone to the development of kidney stones."

Milner also said people concerned about developing kidney stones should cut back on eating foods that also contain high concentrations of oxalates such as spinach, chocolate, rhubarb and nuts. They should easy up on salt, eat meat sparingly, drink several glasses a water a day and don't avoid foods high in calcium, which reduces the amount of oxalate the body absorbs.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/115870.phpI LOVE green tea...   I'll have to be more careful.. pain was so bad that once it felt like I was delivering a child made out of razor blades," said the 46-year-old Mulac. "I really had no idea that iced tea could lead to that."
now.. why would that comment make me laugh???A sort of related question - do any of the people who had kidney stones also deal with depression? [QUOTE=Pip!]A sort of related question - do any of the people who had kidney stones also deal with depression? Thanks Lynn for the reminder about oxilate...I had 4 kidney stone surgeries, never passed one..

For people that have a tendency to form stones, the urologist usally orders a 24 hour urine test.

I'm still showing high oxilate, and spinach is at the top of the list..I was making smoothies with many kinds of berries, and they have oxilate also, and my oxilate went up...Surpising that such healthy foods have it.

The urologist says if i slip up, just flush out drinking lots of water, and also got all the info about the lemons..Will ask him next time, if green tea has oxillate

Heard something on the news with global warning, there may be an increase of kidney stones, if people don't drink enough water

Thanks for the good article!



[QUOTE=aimee11]

Heard something on the news with global warning, there may be an increase of kidney stones, if people don't drink enough water


[/QUOTE]

I've heard that bunch of BS as well... do these global-warming activists realize how silly some of their chicken-little ramblings make them look?
[QUOTE=JasmineRain] [QUOTE=aimee11]

Heard something on the news with global warning, there may be an increase of kidney stones, if people don't drink enough water


[/QUOTE]

I've heard that bunch of BS as well... do these global-warming activists realize how silly some of their chicken-little ramblings make them look?
[/QUOTE] Does that include Green Tea? or just regular tea? I drink at least 5 glasses of green ice tea daily in the summer. I add mint from the yard when I make it, guess I'll add lemon now.


found this info on "the Green Tea Library"..If people had a kidney stone, and the 24 hour urine test shows high oxalate, then we have to limit how many grams of oxalate, and drink a lot of water.But then this study was used on Lab animals, will ask my urologist about it


As for promoting kidney stones, green tea actually appears to do just the opposite. A study published in the Journal of Urology in 2005 found that green tea inhibited the formation of the most common kind of kidney stones (those made of calcium oxalate) in laboratory animals. The researchers believe that it interferes with the calcification process through its antioxidant effects.


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Thanks Aimee, I was thinking the whole tea thing might be for people more suspeciible to kidney stones.

I heard this story and I don't understand why they are reporting the kidney stones with Ice Tea. What about just Tea??  Did I miss something?
Thinkthinn2008-07-23 18:49:07I drink about a gallon of Sweet Tea every 3 days. Seriously. But I ALSO drink about a gallon of water every 2 days. So I think I even out pretty well...

so far, so good anyway. I do notice that if I don't get my daily water, my sides hurt. Wonder if that's the tea.......
I would take this with a grain of salt.  My mother and myself both are big ice tea drinkers.  I started on it when I was in high school and I am now in my 50s.   That is all I drink from breakfast until I go to bed at night.  It is my heritage (English)  Neither of us have ever had any problems with this.  I think some people develope kidney stones that are bothersome and some don't.  In fact, I have never heard this before.  (Hope I don't develope some now)  I just don't buy it.  But I am a medical skeptic and don't trust anything they say unless I can prove it to be correct.  Yes, your right BirdGirrl...people that are prone to getting stones, sometimes have to watch the grams of oxalate, and eat and drink in moderation, and drink lots of water.

The urologist told me 10 years ago, to go easy at the hot tea at my fav Chinese restaurant..

Some foods, like spinach, and some greens are at the top of the list at 300grams of oxalate, and i have to limit my intake to 50g.

The article is just pointing out that this guy was shocked, that the ice tea did it, not everyone is going to have the problem, just the ones prone to it


Got this from medicine.net(see it didn't mention green tea)
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The oxalate & calcium connection: It was once believed that dietary calcium and oxalate needed to be reduced in order to prevent the formation of calcium oxalate stones. Research has now shown that calcium is actually needed when ingesting oxalate-rich foods in order to assist with decreasing the absorption of the oxalates. The other necessary intervention is to limit your overall intake of oxalate-rich foods. These foods include beets, chocolate, coffee, cola, nuts, rhubarb, spinach, black tea, and wheat bran.
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