Kidney stones can be caused by many different things. If your urine contains more calcium, uric acid, or oxalate than your urine can effectively dilute, you could be creating the perfect conditions for kidney stones. Genetics and certain lifestyle factors can also put you at risk for kidney stones – such as a high protein diet, gout, high doses of vitamin D, and metabolic disorders.
However, there is good news. There is a very natural option that can help get rid of and slow the progress of kidney stones with little difficulty. Drum roll, please…
It’s baking soda or sodium bicarbonate. Furthermore, the study by the Royal London Hospital has found that this simple household cleaning product is so good at what it does that it can prevent patients from going onto kidney machines. It has even helped patients on dialysis reverse the kidney failure to the point of no longer needing dialysis.
So, how does this work?
Bicarbonate is naturally produced by the kidneys. The pancreas also secretes bicarbonate – which is something diabetes treatments fail to address. However, production of bicarbonate is an incredibly important protectant of the kidneys. If the levels are low enough, the kidneys will pick up the slack and begin producing it. Though this connects diabetes and kidney diseases, that’s a little off-topic.
When the kidneys fail to produce bicarbonate or fail to get bicarbonate into the urine (which can be caused by a variety of causes other than kidney stones), the bicarbonate can get into the blood and cause it to become too acidic. When the kidneys are failing, it is incredibly difficult for them to remove any acid from the blood. Acidic blood is cured when the kidneys are able to move the acid into the urine.
When sodium bicarbonate is used in conjunction with an already established treatment for the kidney failure, the British scientists found that it can slow the decline of kidney functions. By the end of the two years of the study, only 6.5% of the participants in the study were in need of dialysis. This was a large reduction when compared to the 33% of the control group who still needed dialysis at the end.
When the sodium bicarbonate is given orally in conjunction with the dialysis, it goes right into the bloodstream – more or less – and can help improve the dialysis efficacy even more. By adding a basic substance, it also keeps the kidneys from being burnt.
Acids that come into the kidneys – namely sulfur, nitrogen, and phosphorus from our foods being digested – must take a basic compound with them. This neutralizes them and allows them to pass out of the kidney without hurting the kidney via a burn.
Other reasons sodium bicarbonate can be such a good preventative measure or addition to dialysis come from how it’s used in other applications. Cancer patients are given sodium bicarbonate to help neutralize the effects of all the chemicals in chemotherapy. Overdoses of chemicals or toxins can also be treated with this amazing compound.
Sodium bicarbonate is usually taken orally. The baking soda easily mixes with water. This is the most common form of administration. However, there is a process to adjust yourself to taking it daily.
The first day, you dissolve a half teaspoon under your tongue. Then you can try drinking 1.5 liters of water a day with a teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate and a half teaspoon of cooking or table salt.
This can also remedy other kidney problems. For example, a high fat and sugar rich diet wreaks havoc on the kidneys. Many diets have these two problems. However, adding sodium bicarbonate will help to reverse what damage has been done.
The diet and lifestyle choices you make can have serious impacts on your kidney health. Using sodium bicarbonate can help alleviate the damage done while you make the adjustments needed.
