LISTS – AND LISTS
I know you are all looking for THE list. Here is one from a reliable source I have have downloaded on my site to a separate document so it opens with one click.
The reliable source, as it turns out, needed some updating. Dr Ross Holmes, professor, School of Medicine, University of Alabama, was kind enough to review the work of Dr. Michael Liebman who is a professor of Human Nutrition and Food Option at University of Wyoming and determine which food entries on the Harvard list needed changing. We cannot change the original but we have updated our lists accordingly and annotated updates with *** marks. So the lists here are the most recently edited available at present.Fred Coe and I have updates and annotated the list for those with a tendency to perfectionism: Updated table of oxalate foods. Set it at 50% for easier reading. Get yourself acquainted with the lists. They will tell you much of what you need to know. A lot of it will even surprise you. You are not as restricted as you think you are or as you have been told.
A more dramatic list is the 177 high oxalate foods we distilled out of the big list. Here are culprits! Not on this list? Probably not very high in oxalate so far as we know – with perhaps a few exceptions. Note that quantity is critical. For example black pepper is high in oxalate but the amounts used are small enough that total oxalate intake from it is negligible.
Eating a low oxalate diet can be overwhelming and difficult to incorporate into your daily life. I just released a course called The Kidney Stone Prevention Course to help you understand how to implement your physician’s prescribed treatment plans.
LET’S DIVIDE AND CONQUER
FOODS TO WORRY ABOUT
A List of Concerning Foods
We have created two graphs for this article. Of the 177 foods on our master list, many are of concern but can be used in your diet if you control the portion size and how often you use them. There are 30 of them that are worrisome enough to deserve special attention.
Here are the 30. The graph shows mg of oxalate in a common portion. The details of the portions are in the complete list. The foods have in common that all contain at least 40 mg/serving. All other foods for which we have reliable data have less oxalate per serving.
Your budget is about 100 mg/day.
What does this graph mean? Does it mean you can never have chocolate, or a baked potato?
No.
It means if you want to use your whole budget on a treat, do it, but keep track and make sure you do not overspend in any meal or in any one day. Have your baked potato, but maybe share half with your partner. Or, have some hot chocolate but make it with milk because calcium helps reduce oxalate absorption. Eat your cashew nuts, but pay attention to how many. If one handful leads to ten, you cannot have them.
FOODS TO AVOID
The graph to the left is of the very few dangerously high oxalate foods.
There are only six foods, but spinach, being worst of all, has two entries. Be careful of this plot because of its range. It begins at 100 mg/portion and rises to 755 mg/portion in only 7 steps, so the distance from miso soup to spinach is about a 7 fold increase.
Rhubarb and spinach are so high you just cannot eat them. Rice bran is something few will miss, the same for buckwheat groats.
People like almonds but have a hard time controlling portion size. If you can keep it to 11 almonds a day – the portion size that gives 122 mg of oxalate, alright. Otherwise stay away from them.
If you have to eat any of these foods, caution is hardly a strong enough word.
Are you sure you need to eat them?
Why?
WHAT ARE WE SAYING?
We are saying that oxalate is common in foods, and that you have to be careful, but care is a scarce resource. How much care can you give every bite? The graphs say if you eat moderately high oxalate foods – the first graph – be careful.
Watch portions.
If you are eating one of the six dangerously high oxalate foods, stop eating it.
It is too hard to be careful with those six foods. They have too much oxalate for most of you to handle. So, just say no.
WHY BELIEVE OUR DATA?
These data arose from a major effort at the Harvard School of Public Health. A world class expert has curated it twice. Harvard can be wrong and so can Ross Holmes, but both will tend to be wrong less often than the average persons who attempt to put complex data into the public domain. We have always appreciated comments, and if anyone has a peer reviewed publication with different food oxalate levels than ours, we will read the paper and see if it warrants our making a change.
Medical research is endlessly argumentative, and food oxalate is no exception. A recent paper contrasts findings from 6 websites and 2 applications and finds some wide variations. Of the sites, the Harvard site – used here as our reference, and the Wake Forest site – which is a legacy of an outstanding investigative group have most standing with me. Leaf through the comparisons between them in the 4 charts and in the large table at the very end. On the whole differences are modest. The hyperoxaluria and oxalosis list from the paper has been withdrawn from their site.
DO YOU NEED A LIST?
Sure, a list is nice. But we helping you here. Lists can run on to hundreds of foods. The picture is meant for focus. Here are the ones to focus on.
Many of you leave the doctor’s office thinking you will never be able to eat a fruit or vegetable again. If that wasn’t bad enough chocolate and nuts are gone, too. Some of this sadly is true, most of it is not. I am here to bring you good news: Almost everything, high oxalate or not, can be incorporated into your diet safely.
Do you need a low oxalate diet? You may if your stones contain calcium oxalate crystals and your urine oxalate is high enough to pose risk.
If you do need a low oxalate diet, what is your goal? Less than 100 mg of diet oxalate is good; less than 50 mg is ideal.
If you want to read some of the science about urine oxalate and risk of stones and about how we get to the diet oxalate goals, it is summarized at the end of this article.
Here we assume you do need to lower the oxalate in your diet.
CALCIUM FIRST
Low calcium diets can raise urine oxalate, and the solution may be as simple as a proper calcium intake. There is every reason for stone formers to eat 1000 mg of calcium daily to protect their bones. The common hypercalciuria of calcium stone formers puts bones at special risk when diet calcium is low.
Before changing your whole life around, ask yourself if you are avoiding calcium foods. If so, add them back and ask your doctor to check your urine oxalate again. It may fall enough that a low oxalate diet is not necessary.
If low calcium intake is not your problem, and you need a low oxalate diet, here is my take on how to do it.
WHAT IS THE DIET OXALATE GOAL?
Typical diets contain upward of 200 – 300 mg of oxalate. For stone prevention, a reasonable goal is below 100 mg of oxalate daily. An ideal would be about 50 mg daily if that can be accomplished.
To get there, consider the oxalate contents in common serving portions of all of the foods, and make up a plan for yourself.
FRUITS
FRESH
Everyone who comes to me is very unhappy thinking they can never have a berry again. This is Baloney. The only berry that is very high in oxalate is raspberries (look at the list). On the other hand, people do not realize avocado, oranges, dates, and even grapefruit and kiwi are very high and need caution.
This doesn’t mean you can never have these healthy treats. If you incorporate any of these high oxalate fruits into your morning yogurt you can reduce some of the effects of the oxalate content.
Also look at your portion sizes. You really cannot eat a lot at any one time. Dates are not a good bargain: One date is 24 mg!
CANNED OR DRIED
Canned pineapple is a problem.
Dried fruits have to be a worry because the water is taken out, so a ‘portion’ of dried fruit can be gigantic in oxalate content. Figs, pineapple and prunes are standouts. Just think: 1/2 cup of dried pineapple is 30 mg – not a lot of fruit for a lot of oxalate. If you want dried fruit, think about apples, apricots, and cranberry as lower oxalate options.
VEGETABLES
Spinach and rhubarb are standouts; stay away.
Other vegetables you need to be aware of are tomato sauce, turnips, okra, and yams (sweet potatoes) along with beans of different sorts.
I am not in the business of taking healthy foods away from people. But in the cases above you really must limit; there is just too much oxalate and these foods do not pair well with high calcium foods the way fruits can be mixed right into your yogurt or cereal and milk.
Many of you have been told to stay away from all green leafy vegetables. This is not true. Look at the list. There are plenty of salad options still available for you including kale. Even though tomato sauce is high in oxalate (see below) that is because of concentration. A whole medium tomato is only 7 mg and who eats more than one at a time?
Many of the salad vegetables are so low in oxalate they are freebies. Eat what you want.
POTATOES
These are Trouble! I put them into their own separate group even though they are vegetables.
From french fries to baked potatoes they are very high oxalate items. One ounce of potato chips has 21 mg of oxalate and who eats one ounce? Not I. Baked potatoes are terrible. One comes in at just under 100 mg of oxalate. Mixing sour cream into the potato will not help much; one tablespoon of sour cream contains only 14 mg of calcium. One ounce of cheddar cheese contains 200 mg of calcium, which could help, but it increases calories, salt and fat. But all in all, why struggle so hard? Potatoes are not ideal for stone formers.
DAIRY PRODUCTS
They have no oxalate. They are your main source of calcium. Use them. They can add a lot of salt – cheeses – and can be caloric. But they reduce oxalate absorption and preserve your bones.
For a stone former who has to watch salt intake, increase calcium intake, and lower oxalate intake, here is how to do that. You cannot have as much cheese as you want because of the salt. So portion sizes are very important. Yogurt, milk, even ice cream are good bargains – modest sodium and high calcium. These are a great place to add in a wee bit of chocolate – high oxalate foods – for those of you who cannot live without these high oxalate treats.
BREADS AND GRAINS
Some of the basic ingredients to make these foods are very high. White flour and brown rice flour are high in oxalate so everything you make from them will be high.
BREADS
Even so, as far as kidney stones go, breads are mainly alright because of portion size: not that much flour so one slice is 5-8 mg. French toast and New York style bagels top the list at 13 mg for two slices and 40 mg for one bagel – as much as anyone will eat of either food.
PASTA RICE AND GRAINS
Spaghetti, one cup cooked is 11 mg and most of us eat more than one cup.
Buckwheat groats, one cup cooked is 133 mg – I don’t see many of you saying ‘darn it’ or taking to your bed, but beware. Millet and bulger, wheat berries, rice bran, corn grits, and corn meal, these are widely used and are high. If you are using these, be thoughtful.
Here are some low oxalate options in this category: White rice, hummus, corn flour, corn bran, flax seed, and oat bran are popular and safe.
MEAT PRODUCTS
Since oxalate is only found in plant foods, all the meats are safe. Fish, too.
For our vegetarian friends, tofu and veggie burgers are very high.
NUTS AND SEEDS
These are just dangerous for two reasons.
Obviously they are very high in oxalate.
Secondly, I don’t know anybody who just has a few nuts at a time.
Just like chips no one eats one – the whole jar is more like it.
But, for one cup of pumpkin sunflower or flax seeds the highest is only 17 mg of oxalate and none for flax. For those of you who love foods in this category seeds are the better choice and they can be sprinkled on yogurt and ice cream.
SWEET STUFF
I have good news for my chocolate lovers. I know most of you have been sent home with a list and chocolate is high on it. But if you look at the numbers nuts are a lot worse than chocolate. Chocolate can be mixed in with dairy products, too, so as to reduce oxalate absorption.
Even so I do want to point out that half a brownie is on the high side, and who eats one half?
You can still satisfy your sugar craving but pay attention to your portion size.
Keep in mind, however, that sugar loads increase urine calcium loss which increases stone risk, so there are two reasons why this food group can be a problem.
But even without chocolate, you eat a lot of flour when you eat a piece of cake, so cake can be a problem – about 15 mg per piece, like french toast. Pies are half the risk because of their fillings – unless they are chocolate pies!
CRACKERS AND CHIPS
The big enemy here is potato chips. A one ounce serving contains a whopping 21 mg of oxalate. I repeat: A one ounce serving.
Your best bet in this category if you’re looking for something crunchy is corn chips – one ounce is 7 mg, popcorn – one cup is 5 mg, and pretzels, one ounce is 5 mg.
Crackers are OK mainly because they are small and the amount of flour is not that much.
BEVERAGES
PLANT SOURCES
Hot chocolate is the clear loser at 65 mg per cup; carrot juice is the runner up at 27 mg per one cup. Lemonade, tea, tomato juices, rice dream and the like are better but still high. The are 15 – 18 mg per serving. Lemonade – frozen concentrate – is 16 mg per 8 ounces so be careful about this as a source of citrate.
Soy milk, for those of you who prefer it, is not a good option. It is very high at 20 mg per cup. We have no data from standard sources for rice milk, cashew milk, and coconut milk; almonds are high in oxalate so the almond milk product will certainly be high.
Tea is so commonly used, here are the details. If you brew your own tea it is high in oxalate. The longer you steep your tea, the more oxalate it will have in it. If you use a sweetened instant iced tea one cup has 0 mg of oxalate.
Here are some juices that are low in oxalate and better substitutes: Apple juice, apricot juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice, grape juice. For all the lemonade drinkers, diet lemonade is low in oxalate.
Here is something very important: Coffee is oxalate free – almost, 1 mg for a cup (2 mg/cup for decaf). We already told you that coffee drinkers have a reduced stone risk, so lets debunk the coffee myth here: Drink it as you wish.
DAIRY SOURCES
Everything is good except chocolate milk. Even that is only 7 mg a cup for a sweet treat here and there.
ALCOHOL
What tops the list in this category is a can of beer: 4 mg of oxalate. All the rest are low and, frankly, the oxalate in a can of beer comes with a lot of fluid. This is not the problem area for stone formers.
WATER
If I didn’t say this to you I could not sleep well tonight. Water is the clear winner in this whole category. It is free of calories, sugar, and oxalate. Please use it as your main beverage and supplement with the items above.
SPREADS AND SAUCES
Chocolate, miso, peanut butter, and tahini are all high.
SOUPS
Miso soups is extremely high – 111 mg/cup. Lentil soup is high, and so is clam chowder – the potatoes.
BREAKFAST FOODS
This is a dangerous meal if you are a cereal lover. Many cereals are high in oxalate. I am afraid you need to look them up in the list by brand. Unfortunately the healthier cereals are highest in oxalate because they contain more plant based ingredients. Probably having milk in your cereal is wise, but we have no data to show.
Eating a low oxalate diet can be overwhelming and difficult to incorporate into your daily life. I just released a course called The Kidney Stone Prevention Course to help you understand how to implement your physician’s prescribed treatment plans.
HOW DO WE MANAGE ALL THIS?
The first thing you need to do is to learn and remember what are the highest oxalate foods and beverages. Without this in mind it is impossible to shop and cook intelligently. Here is a short list of the highest oxalate foods all in one place.
BREAKFAST
For those of you who love cereal because it is quick and easy check out the list and see if the one you love is high in oxalate. If it is, choose the next best one with lower oxalate. Put milk in the cereal.
Alternatives to cereal that are also quick and easy: Yogurt or cottage cheese and fruit. The only fruits to worry about are raspberries because no one puts oranges on their yogurt. Bananas, peaches, blueberries and strawberries are perfect toppings.
More trouble, but no oxalate, eggs any way at all. Boil a batch on Sunday and have them for the week for breakfast, and snacks, too.
Your breakfast coffee is free and so is your water. For juices use orange, apple, pineapple, grapefruit – all great. If you want tea, don’t steep more than a minute and consider adding milk to it. Green tea is better than black.
LUNCH
Typically you are grabbing a salad or a sandwich for lunch, so what now? Many clients tell me they no longer eat salads because their physicians told them to stop all green leafy vegetables.
I’m bringing salads back to you.
Arugula, iceberg, romaine lettuces, and kale, are fine as your base. Stay away from spinach. Here are good toppings. Cauliflower, corn, cucumber, mushrooms, onions, peas, scallions, squash and zucchini are all fine. Tomatoes are fine, too; it is only the sauce that is high. Broccoli and green pepper are moderately high so watch the portion size.
Sandwiches will cost you between 12 and 16 mg of oxalate depending on the bread you are using – 2 slices. This doesn’t mean you can never have a sandwich, it just means you have to keep track of how much. You can have 50 to 100 mg daily. What goes inside between the two slices of bread is usually cheeses and meats which are oxalate free. So sandwiches are not something to be afraid of.
SUPPER
Beef, chicken and fish are all fine, and those the main courses for most of us. You will run into problems if you are a pasta or potato eater. If you are you need to limit the amount of times you have these foods each week and also the quantity each time you use them. Substitutes are a problem: White rice is a nice substitute for potatoes but there are few others. It is more veggies that have to fill in – very healthy but not as much fun.
Here is a recipe for cauliflower – ‘mashed potatoes’ you will like and even think, sometimes, is the real thing. There are many versions on the web, choose the one that makes you happy but be careful about the ingredients.
There is also quinoa which is not on our lists, but may well be high. A recent scientific article on this plant does not give oxalate contents which suggests they are not reliably known.
I have recently put together a private FB page called THE Kidney Stone Diet. It is a group that helps educate you on your physician prescribed treatment plans. As you can imagine, oxalate comes up in many posts. I moderate it to keep it clinically sound. Come on over and join the discussion!
URINE OXALATE AND RISK OF KIDNEY STONES
I promised you some science – here it is for those interested. It concerns only highlights from the food – urine oxalate research recently performed and seemingly germane to the problem of how stone formers should control oxalate intake.
The most useful data about urine oxalate we have so far is from three cohorts studied by Dr. Gary Curhan. Two are cohorts of nurses one a cohort of physicians. These people have kept track of many aspects of diet and health for decades, and among their records are onset of kidney stones.
As he did for urine calcium, Curhan measured urine oxalate in properly selected subgroups from each cohort, including people who did and did not begin forming stones. From these samples he could calculate the relative risk of new onset of stones in relation to 24 hour urine oxalate excretion.
The two nurse cohorts are red, the physicians – all men – are blue. The dotted line at 1 is the risk threshold: Above that line, risk is present.
The top of each crosshatched bar shows the mean relative risk for each of the five urine oxalate ranges. Clearly the mean goes up as urine oxalate goes up.
But the mean relative risk has a range of uncertainty around it. The bottom of the solid portion of each bar is the lower 95th percentile for that range of uncertainty. When that bottom lies above 1, risk is very likely to be present.
For both the women and men groups, that point is reached between 25 and 30 mg of urine oxalate a day. Therefore one wants to try to get urine oxalate below 30 mg daily and even lower, below 25 mg daily if possible. The average urine oxalate excretion among the women in this study was close – 26 and 28 mg/day for those who did not form stones and just a bit higher for those who did – 28 and 30 mg per day. The men are a problem: 39 and 41 mg/day for those who did not and those who did form stones.
This is not diet oxalate, it is urine oxalate. Urine oxalate is how much the body makes and how much is absorbed from foods. Mostly, we can control only the second part – how much is in the food.
HOW MUCH DIET OXALATE DAILY
All dietary advice depends on having a reasonable goal in mind for oxalate intake. My goal of 50 – 100 mg of oxalate from food daily is not unreasonable given the research that has been done in normal people and stone formers.
Holmes and colleagues found a urine excretion of oxalate of about 10 mg/gm urine creatinine in normal 
people eating a synthetic oxalate free high calcium diet (graph at left). As diet oxalate increased, urine oxalate rose from 0 to 10 mg/2500 kcal/d, urine oxalate rose steeply from 10 to 14 mg/gm urine creatinine. It rose more slowly, from 14 to barely 15 mg/gm urine creatinine as diet oxalate was increased to 50 mg/2500 kcal/d, and more or less at the same slope thereafter so that an increase from 50 mg/2500 kcal/d up to 250 mg/2500 kcal/d increased urine oxalate only from 14 to 18. The closed symbols are whole food the open symbols synthetic diets.
From this work the percent oxalate absorption could be calculated as around 10 – 15% and the contribution of diet oxalate to urine oxalate excretion as around 25 – 40% when intake of oxalate was between 50 and 350 mg/2500 kcal. Therefore one can consider a whole food 1000 mg calcium 50 mg oxalate as a usable low oxalate diet, and a 150 – 250 mg oxalate diet as relatively high.
The balance between diet calcium and diet oxalate does not matter greatly if diet calcium is high. Among normal men and women eating 1000 mg/day of calcium and 750 mg/day of food oxalate, 24 hour urine calcium was about 110 mg/day and oxalate about 44 mg/day.
If the calcium oxalate balance is altered so calcium intake is 400 mg and 20 mg of oxalate at breakfast and lunch, and 200 mg of calcium and 710 mg of oxalate at dinner, as compared with simply 333 mg of calcium and 250 mg of oxalate in all 3 daily meals, urine oxalate is lower after the high calcium low oxalate meals, but only slightly higher after the high oxalate low calcium evening meal than when calcium and oxalate intakes were balanced. This means that when diet calcium is at least 1000 mg daily the balance of calcium to oxalate within any one meal is not likely to affect stone risk.
Seiner and colleagues make clear that stone formers are different from normal people. They divided male and female stone formers into 2 groups of 93 people each, one with urine oxalate above 0.5 mmol (~50 mg) of urine oxalate daily and the other with urine oxalate below 0.4 mmol (~40 mg) daily. They found virtually identical calcium and oxalate intakes: 845 vs. 812 calcium and 101 vs. 130 mg daily of oxalate respectively in the lower and higher urine oxalate groups. But the below 0.4 mmol group excreted only 27 mg of oxalate daily on average, whereas the high oxalate group excreted 64 mg daily. In other words diet was not responsible for the higher urine oxalate excretion, suggesting a difference of oxalate absorption. Those prone to high oxalate excretion seem, therefore, to most need diet modification.
Knight and colleagues found a wide range of oxalate absorption among 38 calcium oxalate stone formers eating a self choice diet. Urine oxalate excretion (vertical axis) varied with percent of diet oxalate absorbed (horizontal axis). The mean absorption centered around 5%; a few outliers absorbed over 15% up to 25%. This supports what Seiner found – some stone formers will have urine oxalate levels very responsive to diet oxalate and sans a research protocol we will not know. This is another good reason to keep diet oxalate low – 50 to 100 mg if possible.
PROTEIN AND GELATIN
Diet protein intake does not affect urine oxalate excretion. In 11 normal people fed a 1000 mg calcium, 51 mg oxalate, 3000 mg sodium fixed diet, varying protein intake from 0.6 to 1.6 gm/kg/day – a very wide range – did not alter urine oxalate appreciably (mean values were 23, 23, and 25 mg daily for the three protein intakes) even though oxalate precursors like glycolate rose markedly (25, 22, and 46, mg daily).
Jello is a source of hydroxyproline which converts to glycolate and oxalate, and oral loading with gelatin can raise urine oxalate. Ten normal people eating a 1000 mg calcium, 150 mg oxalate diet (typical normal level) were fed supplemental gelatin as one quarter of daily protein intake. Urine oxalate was 24 mg daily vs. 17 mg daily when the same diet was supplemented with whey protein – containing little hydroxyproline – as a control. So lots of jello is not an ideal plan for stone formers.
Where does this leave us about how much oxalate is alright for a day. If diet calcium is high, as it should be, at about 1000 mg, then one should try to limit diet oxalate below 100 mg daily. Perhaps this is most important in those patients whose baseline oxalate excretions are higher – in the range of above 40 mg daily.
Eating a low oxalate diet can be overwhelming and difficult to incorporate into your daily life.
For those who need special help, I run an online course: The Kidney Stone Prevention Course to help you understand how to implement your physician’s prescribed treatment plans.
I currently have phleboliths in my pelvic region. Is a LOD recommended for phleboliths? Thank you.
Hi Pamela, one does nothing about these. They are harmless unless your physicians believe otherwise. Regards, Fred Coe
My 91 year old mother had kidney stones. She is telling me she can have peppers and tomatoes, just not the seeds and peel???
Catherine,
Find the list and what she can and cannot have here:https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
But, she can have peppers and tomatoes. All of both.
Best, Jill
Thanks SO much for this research! There is so much conflicting data available, especially regarding the oxalate levels of various foods. A few years ago, I had 17ft of my small intestine surgically removed. Ever since then, I have been forming calcium kidney stones at the rate of about 3 per month. 95% of them are small and pass with no pain. My urologist gave me a terrible, antiquated list of foods and their related oxalate levels. It was essentially worthless. This data is very helpful! Thanks!
Hi Steve,
Here are other lists I made from the Harvard list and also a searchable version of it: https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi Steve, Small bowel malabsorption with high urine oxalate is a special kind of oxalate problem. The main reason for high urine oxalate is fat malabsorption because of loss of small bowel, so reduced diet fat is important. Similar issues arise after obesity surgery. Extra oral calcium in the form of supplements taken with each main meal often helps lower urine oxalate, as can oxalate adsorbents such as cholestyramine. Your personal physicians need to supervise all this to reduce urine oxalate while preserving full nutrition. Your management is beyond the usual for common stone formers. I would not rely on diet oxalate management alone as a treatment. Regards, Fred Coe
I love smoothies with proteins as an occasional meal replacement, but I like to do from home to control carb levels. Been exploring various plant proteins and “milks” that are not soy, but wanted to have a list of go-tos so my palette doesn’t get bored.
What are your perspectives on Oatmilk, Hemp milk, and hemp protein powder (I believe I’ve read coconut milk is a good option also). I have also used plant protein in past but it’s a balance between searching for organic, or that some products, like Orgain have oxalate-rich contents, including stevia. Any advice would be gratefully appreciated!
Hi Charlie,
Funny you should ask. I just sent out an email to my email list and it covered just this. As an occasional meal replacement, I do not mind that you drink them. They can be a good source of calcium if you use the right “milk”. Oat, hemp, coconut, flax, and rice are all fine. Get the lowest sugar ones and the most calcium-enriched ones. Also, Stevia once processed has NO oxalate. You can read this article on my site about calcium- https://kidneystonediet.com/why-you-need-calcium-and-how-to-get-more-of-it/
Best, Jill
Jill,
Are steel cut oats high in oxalate? I eat 1/2 cup in the morning with some brown sugar, cinnamon and honey. According to the box, a serving size is 1/4 cup and there are 40g of whole grain in each serving.
Thanks.
Dan
Hi Dan,
Make sure to get your safe list here on my website:https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Also, do you need brown sugar and honey? How about subbing out one of those sugars for blueberries. You will keep the sweet and gain some fiber.
Best, Jill
Thanks Jill. So in looking at the safe list would Steel Cut Oats be considered “oatmeal cereal”?
Dan
Hi Dan,
One really cannot be perfectly sure. BUT. I eat steel cut oats and so do many of my patients. They all lower their urine oxalate. Have it with milk or non dairy milk to get your calcium. You will be fine.
Best, Jill
I wanted to ask about tea. What kinds of herbs teas are the best to drink?
Hi Alexia,
Make sure to read this for your answer-https://kidneystones.uchicago.edu/new-post/
Best, Jill
This is so helpful, thank you. I’ve been trawling through many sites and finding conflicting information. I feel very comfortable trusting yours. For the record, although my kidneys sometimes ache like crazy, I haven’t been diagnosed with stones. My main issues are incredibly painful joints and muscles. When these are at their most painful, my kidneys twang in sympathy. Just a couple of days after cutting out the offenders you’ve identified, the symptoms have reduced.
I have read that we store a lot of oxalate that will cause a resumption of symptoms as it is released by the body, and that it might be advisable to reduce consumption gradually. Would you recommend the same? Thanks again so much for your hard work on this.
Hi Kate,
Dr. Coe and I do not agree with that. I have worked with thousands (THOUSANDS) of patients. Not one of them has had issues with lowering oxalate (or what people call “oxalate dumping”)
Get your calcium, lower your oxalate by taking away the highest oxalate foods and all will be fine. Lowering sugar will help with inflammation. Here is a another list I made all derived from the original Harvard list but foods that are safe. Make sure you read the article that accompanies the list so you understand how to use it and WHY I made it.
https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/#
Best, Jill
That’s excellent news, thanks again.
Just like to say thank you so much for your oxalate information. I used to live my life with constant urinary tract infections, a very itchy rash and now I’ve found your diet
The last few months I have no urinary tract infection and feeling stronger every day and rash will go away as I already realise that’s from too much flour. 😊 Fantastic diet suggestion!
Wow! This is phenomenal. I’ve been disabled for a few years now with chronic pain and fatigue as well as many other seemingly random issues (food sensitivities, insomnia, thirst, frequent urination, cystitis). I’ve just started taking calcium and already feel my body changing for the better! Thank you so much for your work and this easy to read resource.
Hi Valerie,
Please remember we do NOT suggest taking calcium supplements but to get your calcium from beverages and foods. Supplements in pill form can increase your stone risk. The body likes it better from foods.
Best, Jill
I just found out I’ve been eating all the wrong foods that I thought were good foods good for me: stevia (liquid and packaged), fresh black currant berries to help with eye problems, cinnamon. How many grams of oxalate in each? Some of the research is confusing or not there. Thank you so much!
Hi Victoria,
Stevia in the processed form is NOT high in oxalate. Just the plant itself. Read this article so you can understand why we choose the list we do.
Best, Jill
I eat built bars 100 percent chocolate protein bar one daily
Are they high in oxalates?
Thank you
Kathy
Hi Kathy,
I don’t have a count for them as they have not been studied. They have chocolate. If you do eat them that is a good place to put some calcium too. Also, think about switching up the flavors. Don’t always have the chocolate one. They just recently brought back lemon and strawberry.
Best, Jill
Hi JHarris, best info so far. 2 years ago i had a gallbladder full of stones & had removed. A month ago after having severe pain i was diagnosed with a 4mm calcium55%oxalates40%phosphates5% stone which came out in about 3 weeks. I’m definitely going to use all the info here so i will not experience a stone again. Thx Thx Thx
P.S. the only Confusing for me is which kind of oat, wheat, kind of flour white or whole wheat to use.
Hi Ara, Given your stone is nearly 50% calcium phosphate, your problem may not be oxalate but urine calcium and pH. Please obtain proper testing which includes serum and 24 hour urine measurements to find out what is wrong before worrying about diet oxalate. Regards, Fred Coe
This is great info thank you! When I went to the ER earlier this year with a kidney stone the doctor told me to avoid caffeinated beverages. I drink two cups of coffee a day but from what I’m reading that’s not an issue? Also, I currently have a kidney stone that I’m trying to pass and I read that I need to limit my dairy products. Is this true and is there anything else I should limit besides the high oxalate items you’ve mentioned? Thanks so much!
Hi Laura,
There is so much more to the diet than oxalate. Read about the kidney stone diet here on this site and on my site as well. You coffee is fine. When we over-caffeinate when we run into problems.
Best, Jill
Hi!
I’ve read in a couple of places that oils made from high-oxalate foods are usually low oxalate. Is this true? I was curious specifically about:
-Sesame oil
-Almond oil
Not sure if what happens with milks, but also curious:
-Coconut
-Coconut Water
-Coconut Milk
-Avocado Milk
Do you have any information on those?
Hi Daniel,
There is no oxalate in oils. There can be in milk. Stay away from almond milk and cashew milk. The others you listed are fine. Watch any added sugar and make sure they all have calcium added.
Best, Jill
Is Macadamia milk low in oxalates?
Thank you
Hi Eileen,
I do not have numbers by Harvard on it. But since it is a nut, I would not use it just to be safe.
Best, Jill
I am gluten and dairy free. Allergy to soy. What can I drink for my calcium. I was using almond but now will stop that. Please help I have taken so many things out of my diet because of acid reflux and lichen sclerosus.
Hi Sue,
Perhaps you have taken too much out of your diet. Here is an article that will help with calcium:https://kidneystonediet.com/calcium/
Hope that helps.
Best, Jill
I’d like to download the documents (lists), but won’t open on my Apple devices
Hi KBadger, Our security team forbids sharing – universities are besieged by intruders. You can print the materials at will. Regards, Fred
Hello. I am having tests for vulvadynia. Would the low oxalate diet help me please.?
Hi, OOOpauline, Contrary to a number of websites, I know of no evidence for a link between the oxalate molecule and vulvodynia. The molecule itself is inert having no metabolic pathway. Crystals of calcium oxalate are indeed a cause of kidney stones and occur in some forms of bladder inflammation, but there is no evidence of such crystals in the vulvodynia. Best, Fred Coe
Hi Pauline, I was diagnosed with vulvodynia last august. I have had AMAZING success with a low oxalate diet. I’ve stuck strong to it for 10 months now and it’s improved my life in so many ways. I saw benefits in just a few days. I do not eat nuts, potatoes, beans, spinach, cereal, whole grains, chocolate, peanut butter, and dates/figs. I do allow other small portions on occasion of other moderate-oxalate foods. My main carb is white bread (1 serving per day) and white rice. I love apples and cheese, eggs/greek yogurt for breakfast, and chicken/salmon/ground turkey/tuna meals. I also eat a lot of salads with romaine and iceburg.
Avocados are Not high in oxalates!
Theres a pdf from university of pittsburgh medical center and avocado is listed in low oxalate foods please correct your mistake!!!
Hi John,
The list we promote is Harvard’s list. Although Harvard lists avocado as “high” it can certainly be eating on a low oxalate diet. Read this article and understand more:https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hello! I enjoyed reading your article! Do you happen to know of any relationship between kidney stones and polycystic kidney disease? I was recently given a diagnosis of PKD. I’m trying to find new research that shows promise to slow down cyst growth and slow the disease. Thank you.
Hi Cindy, I believe PKD is a cause of stones. As for prevention of growth, I am not an expert but I work with one, Dr Arlene Chapman. I will bring your question to her, and perhaps she might want to offer suggestions. Regards, Fred Coe
Any idea if the following are high or low in oxalate?
Snow Fungus (Scientific name: Tremella fuciformis)
Black Fungus (Scientific name: Auricularia polytricha)
Both are popular food in Asia with high nutritional benefits.
Hi Nana,
We do not have numbers on these items.
Best, Jill
This is fantastic, thank you! One correction: you put the serving of miso as abnormally high (1 cup). There’s no way anyone would eat 1 cup of miso in a serving! The actual serving size is 1-2 tbsp. So that would drop the content of miso to 2.5 mg oxalate/serving (1 tbsp), which is LOW.
Hi Mica,
Of course you are right. It is important to notice serving sizes of course. It was just the portion Harvard studied. Portion always matters and will increase or decrease your oxalate content of the food.
Best, Jill
I cannot find any information specifically on the oxalate content of green leaf lettuce. Do you know? Thank you
Hi Andrea, Looks like Jill missed this one. Lettuce has virtually no oxalate. Fred
Cornmeal is shown as very high in oxalate but cornbread is shown as a recommended food. Could you explain? Thank you very much!
I am curious when lowering sugars, do I need to look at total sugars or added sugars? I saw a recommendation of 25g or less for low Oxalate diet.
Hi Bridget, the problem is fructose which is in refined sugars. So it is added sugars we need to reduce. Oxalate has nothing to do with sugars. Regards, Fred Coe
Need a low oxalate diet with high fiber. Can you tell which fiber supplement is also low oxalate?
Hi Marcia,
Get your fiber by food. There are plenty of lower oxalate high fiber fruits and veggies. Come to my website to get the safe oxalate list and make sure you read the article on why I made it.https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi. Was just wondering if it is possible to get the whole list by email at all?
I am curious about the low oxalate leafy greens especially.
Trying to make a list for myself of 5-10 vegetables that are all low in oxalates and lectins too.
Many thanks, Richard
Hi Richard,
Come get your oxalate list here from my site:https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Thank you so much! Quick question. If my oxalate budget is 100mg a day, does this exclude oxalate that binds to calcium in the milk I drink or cheese I eat? Also, after eating a food that’s about 10-15mg in oxalate (without any calcium), I often have mild discomfort during urination despite constant hydration. For this reason, my oxalate consumption has been very low with my animal protein consumption increasing. How can a young person with a high metabolism decrease their risk by keeping oxalate and protein consumption low at the same time?
Hi Nathan,
Get your calcium, if you have an oxalate issue keep it to 100 per day. TOTAL. I would not worry about adding calcium every time you eat a lower oxalate food. Have you done a urine collection? Most will have no issues with oxalate once you stop eating the highest oxalate foods and get your calcium. This article from my site might help you, also there is a searchable oxalate list there as well:https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi jharris,
Are you sure, Avocado low in oxalates?
Hi Liam,
My patients enjoy avocados and remain with low oxalate values on their urine collections. Get your daily recommended requirement for calcium and enjoy.
Best, Jill
I’m sorry, please I didn’t get it, are avocados low or high in oxalate?
Glad avocados are safe. I think some confusion arises as avocados seem to safe per most resources, but as you point out so well – information can vary. In the page above, it says “On the other hand, people do not realize avocado, oranges, dates, and even grapefruit and kiwi are very high and need caution.” I have read elsewhere that dates, oranges, etc are high, but saying avacodos are high and need caution then later saying enjoy leads to questions. Is it they are high, but we can enjoy in small portions? Or were they inadvertantly included with dates, oranges, etc?
Dear Bherr,
Unless one is talking about a food being over 50mg/serving, all foods can be eaten in normal portion sizes. I have an article that explains how to keep your oxalate under 100mg/day but also allowing for a very large variety of foods. Come get your safe oxalate list and read the article that goes with it so you can understand how to use this list (derived from the Harvard list).https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi Bherr,
You can have up to 100 mg/oxalate per day (unless your doc has stated otherwise). At 19mg/med avocado they can easily fit into your day. Make sure you read that safe oxalate list article. It will clear everything up.https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
I also offer The Kidney Stone Prevention Course. It is online and deeply discounted right now due to the virus. You will find it helpful if you decide to join. Kidneystonediet.com
Best, Jill
Hi,
Thank you for all your information. I have three questions.
1) I have read that chia seeds are high in Oxalates but didn’t see them discussed here. What is your experience with chia seed powder?
2) Do you know how much Oxalate is in one serving of steel cut oats (gluten free)?
3) where do green beans rank?
Thanks very much!
Thanks for this resource. I am terrible with vegetable so now I have a vegetable smoothie each day with powder supplements. I couldn’t find them on your sheet but are any of the following dry powders high in oxalates? Spirulina, Moringa… Wheatgrass. I have these daily so I would like to know. I used to have spinach in my smoothie but have replaced that with fresh kale after reading your articles. Thanks again.
Any update on this? Just curious what your thoughts are. Thanks 🙂
Hi Craig, Indeed. Here is a more comprehensive view of where low oxalate diet fits into treatment. APart from the worst foods, a high diet calcium with reduced diet sodium usually reduces what one must do about diet oxalate. Here is another. IN other words, diet oxalate matters, but so do a lot of other things, and diet oxalate changes can be much reduced by a more comprehensive approach. Regards, Fred Coe
Hi. Thank you very much for this information. Might you please clarify for me about orange juice. I got the app Oox yesterday upon returning home from hospital stone surgery. It claims to be up to date oxalate, and seems in line with your recommendations except orange juice. Should I toss this app!?? Here is what they claim…
“Although high in fructose, regular consumption lowers risk for kidney stones noticeably…ratio of fructose to citric acid is very favorable and has a very beneficial influence on urinary composition…provides an alkali load comparable to potassium citrate which is frequently used to treat kidney stones. The consumption of orange juice is highly recommended to prevent kidney stone formation.”
Pardon me, I misread something in your info. I see orange juice is okay.
Hi James, Looks like someone who likes orange juice. It, like all fruit juices, offers a lot of sugar – fructose, no less – and no special stone prevention apart from having water in it. Eating an orange is a lot safer and better nutrition, too. But as well, oxalate is so small a matter taken by itself. Get tested, and find out what is really wrong, and perhaps discard the app if oxalate is not your problem – the urine testing will tell. Regards, Fred Coe
Hello! I was wonder where Parsley stands on the list? High or low?
Thank you!
Hi Arlene,
All herbs are ok. This is a portion game and no one is overeating these herbs in very large quantities. Getting your calcium needs met per day is the most important!
Best, Jill
The article should mention that excessive amounts of vitamin C also become oxalate. That being said, I read there’s a preservative that’s similar to it called sodium erythorbate. As someone who likes to eat a lot of meat, it worries me. Is that preservative different enough from vitamin C that I can be sure it doesn’t become oxalate?
Hi Fred, You are right about oxalate from vitamin C and I notice I have not emphasized that fact on the site. Some debate if the oxalate forms in the person or in the urine after voiding. For that and for erythorbate, I have forwarded your question to an expert who may know. When he replies I will update this answer. Regards, Fred
Hi Fred, I consulted Dr John Asplin who is medical director of Litholink and an outstanding scholar in stone disease. He writes:
“Vitamin C does get converted to oxalate in vivo, the question is how much. I think there is a lot of inter-individual variation in Vit C intestinal absorption and perhaps rate of vit C to oxalate conversion, which makes this hard to sort out. Attached is an article by R Holmes and J Knight reviewing this issue.
As for erythrobate, that was a new one for me. The only thing I could find relates to a paper from 1989 which suggests that conversion to oxalate is minimal. I don’t have access to the original paper but the link below is to a review that summarizes the key findings on Page 23 and provides the reference.
Hope you and Eleanor are staying safe and well.
John”
The reference to Holmes and Knight is this; below is the one on erythrobate.
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4360
Regards, Fred Coe
If one’s calcium is low, will a calcium supplement help or should you stick with eating foods high in calcium?
Hi Jennifer,
The body likes calcium from foods best. Calcium supplements in pill form can increase your risk for stones.
Best, Jill
Hi Jennifer, I believe Jill Harris has answered you but I want to add. When you say your “calcium is low”, do you mean your diet intake is low or that your blood or urine calcium is low? If the latter two, then diet is not necessarily a sufficient answer. Let me know. Regards, Fred Coe
Hi,
Wonderful Information on the Diet…
I want to eat 20 Almonds a Day but, you are advised to limit to 11/Day.
Any suggestions on how to take 20 Almonds/Day by adjusting other foods.
And also, please let us know whether we can take 20 at a time or how?
Thank you in Advance
Hi Rai,
Giving 11 almonds was generous enough. Normally I just say “stay away from almonds.” They are just too high and it is very hard to limit them. Use pistachios or other lower oxalate nut or seed. I have a safe oxalate list that I derived from the Harvard list. Read the article that goes along with it.https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hello,
I am a 47 yr old female. I had my first stone ever and it was large at 12 mm. I had the stone laser surgery and did not pass anything that could be analyzed by a lab (laser turned the stone to dust). I did the 24 hour urine test and my oxalate level was 73 and the doc said I was low in citrate and low to normal in calcium. He recommended taking citrical. I was on a lectin free diet and had virtually removed dairy from my diet since last June (for joint pain). I was eating tons of high oxalate foods and my joint pain subsided – literally millet, spinach, nuts and dark chocolate every day for the last nine months and no calcium at all except for parmesan cheese (and spinach). From reading on your website for 10 hours yesterday, I think you would recommend that I don’t take the citrical but instead try and focus on bringing calcium back into my diet, staying away from the high oxalate food list and retesting in about 6 weeks? Doctor said to wait 6 months to a year to retest, but I am worried. I am frustrated that the doctor gave me this advice. I just wanted to hear your thoughts on this. Do you think I should take the citrical for the citrate benefits and just to help supplement calcium intake or just try and get 4 lemons worth of juice in my water daily? Thank you so much for all of the info you provide on your website!
Hi Nicole, It sounds like a perfect oxalate storm – no diet calcium, lots of oxalate! You have read my mind correctly including the timing – with a urine oxalate of 70 waiting is not the most ideal plan. I suspect your physician, not unwisely, thought the calcium citrate would indeed block oxalate absorption and that a lesser oxalate intake would do the same, so testing could wait and your burden be less. But I am sure she/he would be just as happy if you checked right away, and I would agree. As for the citracal, it can be part of your recommended 1000 mg/d calcium intake, or neglected pending the test results. The low urine citrate is another matter, and perhaps a better diet will restore the citrate. If not, the reason for a low value warrants some effort. Regards, Fred Coe
Thanks for this article.
I’m worried about my kidneys. I have a mild ache in the lower middle back and sometimes I have swollen bags under my eyes and blue in the corners. My urine has recently been tested for various things and no concern was shown over the results regarding my kidneys.
Still, I had an issue with my kidneys in the past and this feels similar.
I’m almost vegan and avoiding wheat (which makes me feel ill) so many of the good things cited in this article are excluded for me.
My main joy in life is tea and dark chocolate (I know).
I usually have two or three cups of black tea in the morning then redbush and green tea the rest of the day. I also consume approximately 100g of 85% dark chocolate per day as well. I’m trying to half this amount.
I don’t know what to do. After a meal of rice, for example, I sometimes feel terrible (puffy, blue-ish eyes) and feeling ‘off’. But I don’t add salt.
Do I need a blood test? Am I a hypochondriac? Are there some simple steps I can take to help my kidneys? And most importantly, can the kidneys recover if given the chance?
Thank you for reading
Hi Ella, How about your routine blood test – serum creatinine? Your physician has obtained this, and I presume the value was normal. Ask her/him. If in need of more checking, urine albumin or protein/gm of urine creatinine – I imagine already measured. If both normal, you might want to stop worrying about kidney disease. Of course, your blood pressure, blood glucide, BMI all are factors that matter to kidneys, and you can also know these values as well. Regards, Fred Coe
HI Jill, Thanks so much for putting this amazing article together. I am so happy to learn that kale is on the good list as I love kale and cheese.
Sad to learn that spinach is so bad….it is so full of nutrients by weight. I normally eat spinach with a ton of cheese…does this make it ok?
Almonds…how I will miss them.
– Are pecans bad as well?
– Do I assume almond flour is bad too? Say it isn’t so.
How is avocado oil?
Thanks again for the great article.
Chris
Hi I have osteoporosis and research has shown 6 prunes a day can reduce bone loss. What are your thoughts on prunes in this quantity. I try to eat them separate from calcium sources.
Thank you
Hi Bern, I have not read about prunes and osteoporosis. But a query at PubMed of ‘prunes and osteoporosis’ yielded this recent review along with 6 other articles. Although the data are a bit sketchy some experts favor using them. If you are a stone former, I have some reservations, but you can do repeat 24 hour urine testing to be sure the prunes do not increase urine calcium or oxalate. If you are not a stone former, the review applies to you without that complication. Regards, Fred Coe
I need a list of OXALATE
Thanks
Hi Anthony, In the article there is a link to an extensive oxalate list. But be sure you need to alter diet oxalate, and that you do not have other causes of stones that need attention. Regards, Fred Coe
Good day,
This site is very useful, however in my situation it is difficult, because
My stones are 70-80% sodium, 20-30% oxalate and calcium. I’m on a low sodium(1500mg), low oxalate and low calcium(1000mg) diet. However. I’m still producing stones. I’m sum my diet could be better with the oxalate. However, I’m producing more stones than before the diet. I also have ulcerative colitis and gout. I’m on Entyvio for the colitis and allupurinal for the gout. It seems like there is a interaction between medications helping to cause this issue. Do you have any information on this. Is there any other resources that you know of to help me.
Thanks,
Andy
Hi Andy, I do indeed have more for you. Your stones are due to sodium acid urate, I suspect, and that from your colitis with – I would guess – diarrhea. It is a less well known stone. The 24 hour urine testing will usually show high urine ammonia – from diarrhea, but a pH that is higher than required for uric acid stones. Likewise urine volumes tend to be scanty. See if your stones are like this, and if what I say has any relevance for you. Fred
I have read that cooking spinach (and some other vegetables) significantly reduces soluble oxalate. After considering both an individual’s oxalate “sensitivity” (proclivity to ca-oxalate stones) and one’s daily total oxalate tolerance, what is your opinion around cooking/boiling spinach (and other higher oxalate containing vegetables) to reduce their oxalate content?
Hi Richard, As your article notes, boiling can remove some oxalate from spinach. The oxalate is stored as calcium oxalate and that crystal dissolves slowly so removal is incomplete. As a physician, I would hope my patients with calcium oxalate stones and increased urine oxalate simply omit this one most highest food oxalate source. It is not essential for good nutrition and uniquely suited to raise urine oxalate. Regards, Fred Coe
Here is a study on reduction of oxalate upon cooking: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15826055/
Hi Richard, I have seen the paper and agree with you that cooking helps. I noted in my first comment that this food is so high in oxalate it is best left go by. Regards, Fred Coe
I realize that dietary calcium sources is best; and that supplemental citrate is helpful with preventing calcium oxalate stones. That said, do you have a preference/recommendations for the type of citrate, i.e., magnesium citrate; potassium citrate; potassium-magnesium citrate; or calcium citrate?
Hi Richard, As a source of calcium, calcium citrate is certainly effective. If looking for a source of citrate, potassium is best because the only one studied in stone prevention trials. Regards, Fred Coe
Very useful source that covers all aspects of the issue. I have a specific question. I am into fitness and bodybuilding and for progress I need protein. However animal protein is a problem and should be replace by vegetable protein. But most of protein containing vegetables like beans and lentils contain high oxalate levels and also pose a problem. Could you please suggest a safe source of protein. I need about 80 grams per day.
Hi George,
I am a big fitness fan and love working with weights! First off, you can eat animal protein, you just can’t eat a side of beef every day as it increases urine calcium, decreases urine pH thus increasing your risk for calcium oxalate stones and uric acid stones. BUT! You don’t have to give it up entirely, just eat within your range. A good way to figure it out how much is ok is to use this calculator from my website.https://kidneystonediet.com/protein/
Also, you are correct that many of those protein powders have high oxalate veggies. Why not try egg whites? Stay away from chocolate flavors and note the sugar and salt in these powders as they can be very high.
Let me know how it goes, Jill
Dear jharris,
Thank you for your kind information, I am trying to find answers to these kinds of issues for a long time.
I calculated my protein daily needs exactly as per your calculator and it gives 80 grams per day. At the moment I am supplementing myself with vegan plant protein derived from the following: quinoa, brown rice, hemp and peas. Unfortunately even the profound list of foods on this website does not show oxalate content for quinoa and hemp. I know peas is ok and brown rice is not. Do you think protein powder derived from eggs is a better option? Thank you in advance.
There is also protein powder derived from milk and whey. Which is the best option, please advise?
Hi George.
Make sure you need this protein. Do you? Let me know.
Best, Jill
Hi George,
We don’t have a reliable source for the foods you ask. I use egg protein here and there with my smoothies, and this is bc sometimes I am lacking protein. Most people, however, do not. Do you need it to make it to the 80grams you are seeking?
Jill
Thoughts on how to get your calcium in when you have a dairy sensitivity and most plant protein that has calcium is high in oxylates?
Hi Angela, Dairy is a large area. If you have milk intolerance there are alternatives – yogurt as an example. If it is just lactose intolerance there is lactose depleted milk. Jill Harris and I did an article on high calcium modest sodium foods that may help. Likewise, her own website is a good resource. Regards, Fred Coe
Does Monk Fruit sweetener have oxalate?
I am sensitive to dairy, but I want to get calcium to avoid getting another oxalate stone. I’ve seen some mention here that calcium supplements may be ineffective or possibly could even contribute to stone formation. Could someone help me with a more definitive understanding of whether calcium supplementation would help or hinder in my situation? I’d also appreciate any advice on type of calcium supplement, and/or non-dairy source of calcium. THANKS!
Actually, I just read the article that Dr. Coe referenced below (thank you), and I see that, if taken with meals, calcium supplements can and do lower oxalate, but they can cause stones if not taken with meals. I’d still appreciate any advice on the best type of calcium supplement (citrate?) and appropriate dosage. THANKS!
Hi John, The US recommended calcium intake is 1000 mg daily. To me all are alike – calcium is an atom. I would consider price and tolerability. Regards, Fred Coe
Hi John, Calcium supplements can provide needed calcium for bone, and if taken with the larger meals where oxalate is likely encountered will block oxalate absorption and lower urine oxalate. Safe use of supplements in stone formers requires attention to diet sodium, as noted in the link. Regards, Fred Coe
Good Day. I see that barley flour is rather high in oxalates. Does the same hold true for standard whole grain barley that you can buy in bulk sections of grocery stores? (my wife and I love chicken barley stew and use barley in various other dishes!)
Thank you.
Hello! Why do oxalate content lists vary so widely? Would you please tell me if the following are “safe” ? Avocados, dried coconut, hydrolyzed beef protein powder, glutathione powder, curcumin capsules?
Thank you very much.
Hi Rose,
Find your answer here:https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hello! Why do oxalate content lists vary so widely? Would you please tell me if the following have a high or low oxalate content: avocados, hydrolyzed beef protein powder, supplemental glutathione powder, supplemental curcumin capsules, and tea brewed from peppermint leaves? Thank you!
I am a vegan who got a kidney stone and now need to follow a low oxalate diet. I have added Calcium Citrate to my meals but am searching for a healthy balanced list of foods since I am already so limited. Any suggestions?
Hi CHristine, Almost no one needs to follow a low oxalate diet. Only those who are forming calcium oxalate stones, and whose urine oxalate levels are high despite 1000 mg of calcium daily intake, the calcium timed with the main meals. Only those. And even for those it is only the highest oxalate foods that really matter much. They are in the article – the tiny list of worst offenders, and the 177 next highest. I emphasize that with adequate diet calcium properly timed diet change rarely needs stringent efforts. Regards, Fred Coe