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.
Trying to locate the information…. if you are switching to a plant based protein source like Tofu it is listed high in oxalate. What are plant based proteins that have low oxalate levels.. This is confusing too me. I was using egg and salmon as my protein source only to discover they are high in Potassium, Sodium, and phosphorous…
Hi Rhys,
You can certainly fit salmon and eggs into your healthy kidney stone diet. They may have a bit of sodium, but it is naturally occurring. We are more concerned about the heavy amount of sodium in all processed foods and meals eaten out.
Read this on oxalate:https://kidneystonediet.com/oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi. You have stated (in other articles) that drinking orange juice with calcium added is ok to enhance calcium intake but taking calcium supplements can be risky. I don’t understand how orange juice with calcium added would be different than drinking a glass of orange juice and taking a calcium pill at the same time. I hope the orange juice with calcium added is safe as it enables me to easily get to the goal of 1200 mg of calcium daily. Thx much!
Hi Bill,
The pill makes it harder to absorb than the already broken down calcium in beverages.
Best, Jill
Thx much!
Hi Jill,
Thanks so much for all the wonderful information you provide. I wanted to ask you about avocados. I’m a kidney stone patient and also a physician. I’ve read quite conflicting information on the oxalate content of avocados. Some sources say they are high oxalate and should be avoided, other sources say they are low oxalate and can be eaten without concern. I try to stay away from high oxalate foods as well as foods high in sodium and high in protein to benefit my kidneys, but I also try to avoid simply carbohydrates and saturated fats for my general health. Avocados could therefore be a great item for me to eat, IF they are low in oxalate. Given the conflicting information on oxalate content of avocados, I’m wondering if the discrepancy is with free vs bound oxalate? Can you provide any additional guidance on whether fresh, peeled avocado is high or low in free oxalate and whether they can be eaten as part of a kidney-stone prevention diet? Thanks!
Hi Nicholas,
You can certainly eat avocados. Read this article as it might help you understand why I say what I do:https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
I’ve been trying to find the oxalate content in hemp seed. Any chance you might be adding this to the master list in the future?
Thanks,
Josh
Hi Josh,
My patients do use hemp seed witihin normal portions, not overdoing it, and their follow up urine collection still see lower urine oxalate. Getting your calcium is so very important to lower oxalate. As far as we know it has not been studied.
Best, Jill
I am in my 30s been eating bout the same for long time raised on gardens live on a farm with beef cattle…..and all sudden boom. Never had kideny issue before onky had one bladder infection my whole life. And for what ever reason I end up er with calcium oxolate monohydrate hydroxyapatite stone. And am having such a hard time here on what not to eat and what to eat. Since am allergic to molds ive limit milk and and cheese due sinus mucous build up and such and maybe where all started. Wish there was way find when all started. However on furlough for healthy or what I thought was healthy almonds was a snack I planted the garden this year at my house bc my dad has brain cancer and mom had shoulder surgery so I know be challenging for them and did mainly have food here and there. So other than maybe over abundance of nuts and gafden veggies of brocolli cauliflower lettuce leafy collard greeand kale beans tomatoes love me some cucumbers idk what would come first that or dark chocolate…..but we raise beef so naturally we are beef eater so am having such hard time on the meat if I eat sugars doesn’t last esp for work sometimes I dnt see lunch until 3 for mohs surgeries so I’d eat egg sandwich lot times ojt the door or have breakfast burrito. Now here down sode I do like tea half and half does this mean I could never drink tea again. So I jave 5 year old so trying pleas Ethan me keep me health and my husband….like I’d kill for steak baked potato and salad and loved grilled squash and zucchini I do like veggies but maybe I dnt add enough cheese. I dnt add salt bc of my husband high BP so the low sodium thing is tricky bc so many hidden salts and protein am struggling…. i meed a balance new recipes or something am going crazy and stressing bc things he told what left to eat. Granted nkt big fruit eater I try mainly texture thing. Tomatoes another texture use for salsa and juice bc so much sldukm in store bought. I felt great this spring summer eating out the garden …..just don’t see how went down hill but when it did it did and I felt never so awful and am still wobbly bc not full am starving bc unsure to eat this or this oh fuck look salt level on that . Been doing stir fry but see pepper are bad amd usually add zuchinni or squash with lil brocolli. Ive got tons brocolli groing in garden and another round of beans and this saddens me may never see them on my plate so much hard work. Jsut doesn’t make since only thing I can think is kver killed myself in garden out frustration and anger from escaping the world and didn’t drink enough but I dnt drink soft drink or anything really but water and tea here and there and then wonder of the water bc bottled. Anyhow am sorry to ramble but am overwhelmed ive stocked on so much to be wasted it seems and very upsetting. I have 5 year likes speghetti and tacos and whole reason I increased my protein past few year bc they said my b12 was low ans woth pandemic I couldnt get shots so they said eat lil more meat and take b12 supplements maybe all this idk but felt better on the shot now am just sluggish prob bc idk what to eat or am detoxing from all the lemon water. So please help guidiance please
Hi Augusta, Stone prevention depends on the cause and that is found through 24 hour and serum testing. Very often oxalate is of no interest especially when stones have appreciable phosphate as yours do. Take a look at this review of a proper evaluation, be sure to get it, and be treated based on what is found. This may end all the problems you mention, and uncertainties as well. Regards, Fred Coe
The entries for miso is confusing. 1 cup of miso soup has 111 mg, but 1 cup of miso is only 40. How can a cup of soup, where miso concentrations is much lower, has much more oxlate than a whole cup of miso?
It is also misleading/confusing because the chart is Sorted by serving, yet each serving size various from food to food. I wish you have them in all with the same amount, e.g., per 4 oz. that way one can see what food has the highest oxalate concentration.
Hi David,
Sorry, Harvard did the reporting. We are merely providing the list to you.
Best, Jill
I often see competing sources putting certain foods in high, moderate and low oxelate content. What are good sources for obtaining the average values of oxalate content in foods.
Hi Hunter,
I have a nice article explaining all of this here:https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hi! I see white rice is low, but white rice flour is high? Does this mean white rice pasta would be high as well? I was trying to find a good alternative to regular pasta and was disappointed to see this.
I also have a question about Plantains…I see these are low, but on another list I found Plantain CHIPS are listed as HIGH. I’m wondering if this has to do with plantain chips being made from green plantains? Any thoughts?
Thank you for this wonderful resource!
Hi Amy,
Rice flour is high bc of the concentration of rice in the portion size. Portion size is more important than anything else. Many people got stones for a combination of reasons. Too much spinach and almonds every day without any calcium and or not enough fluids. Perfect storm. Eating a variety of foods in normal portion size is key. Paintain chips are a snack my patients enjoy and still maintain low oxalate levels but again, they don’t eat large portions of them and they get their calcium intake daily. Read this to help you understand the oxalate stuff even better:https://kidneystonediet.com/good-oxalate-list/
Best, Jill
Hello and thank you. I live in England and have been researching a low oxalate diet to help my lichens sclerosis. Yours has been the only straight forward and simple source.
Great article, thanks. I never had stones until about the age of 61, but in the past five years, I’ve needed laser lithotripsy four times, though my diet has not changed. Is there any research on why such a change could occur?
I have one question about the list: How can this happen?
Miso 1 cup 40mg
Miso soup 1 cup 111 mg
I cup of miso paste makes about 8 cups of miso soup, so I would expect the miso soup to have about 5 mg. Either the miso paste number is erroneously low, or the miso soup number assumes other ingredients, typically tofu, scallions, and wakame seaweed. I love miso and miso soup, so I am not asking this question frivolously.
Hi William, Given new onset of stones in later life, I would doubt oxalate is a main reason. Here is my best on the topic, and perhaps your physicians can look for the reason. Regards, Fred Coe
What about calcium supplements that are in a soft gummy form? Are they okay?
Hi Pamela,
It really is best to get from food or drink sources. Dairy or nondairy. The body is happier and absorbs calcium better that way. Once you learn how to get your calcium needs met, it really isn’t hard. And remember, we are not expecting perfection every day. We expect you do your best. Going from getting no calcium each day to your recommended daily amount can be overwhelming, so slow and steady wins this race.
Best, Jill
You said hummus is ok so does that mean chickpeas are low in oxalate?
Hi Darlene,
Chickpeas are fine in normal portion size. The problem is we overeat the same foods in whatever quantities we want without getting enough calcium per day. Read this to understand that there is much more than just oxalate with the kidney stone diet.
Best, Jill
I am trying to follow a low oxalate diet, but I am experiencing yeast infection are there any relation between the diet and the infection?
Dear Luz,
There would be no correlation between lowering oxalate and yeast infection.
Best, Jill
Hello
I have been on a journey to get to the bottom of a bladder pain condition
A recent 24hour urinary test shows I have high oxalates and I am trialling 2 weeks low oxalate combined with a magnesium citrate supplement as i also get muscle cramps
I am a vegetarian so this is hard to get my head around and I’m conflicted about Tofu and Bread
Can you please help to clarify? Is there a particular bread that’s better than another I.e. rye bread
I always buy organic
Thanks so much
Hi Louise,
All bread is fine. The best bread is those that are lowest in sugar and sodium and high in fiber. It is more likly the beans and spinach with the lack of calcium you were eating (as this is common with vegetarians). Read this article.
Best, Jill
The oxalate list rates avocados as high yet in response to comments you state they are not a problem
Can you please clarify? Avocados are a mystery on all research r.e. Oxalates
Hi Louise,
Read this article I have written to help you sort it out and why we say it is fine to eat them. You will find many links within this important article that will help you very much with each aspect of the kidney stone diet.
Best, Jill
Hi there,
Could you explain why grapefruit fruit is high for example but grapefruit juice is 0?
Thank you! Great info here!
Marie
Hi Marie,
The concentration is always key. The juice is diluted.
Best, Jill
This is such great information. I am 47 and just had my 2nd calcium oxalate stone. Both came when I had started exercising more in the South Carolina heat and was not drinking anywhere near enough water. Will the 24 hour urine test be able to tell me whether it was poor hydration or high oxalate diet that most likely caused the stones? I have one scheduled in a few weeks.
Hi Carroll,
The test will show your stone risk factors. The first test you do should be done while eating and drinking how you did before you knew about stones. Read this article to understand more:
Best, Jill
Thank you. I don’t see the link to the article you referenced. Can you post it again please?
What is your opinion on Almond milk, Soy milk ?
Hi Marty,
I would not use either and instead use coconut or pea or flax milk.
Best, Jill
Oat milk?
Hi LAN,
Have it-
Jill
Hello! I am a chocolate milk drinker. I have had calcium oxalate kidney stones. I am planning on cutting back, but was wondering if I could still have one glass a day? Or would it be better to limit once a week or not at all. Thanks for your help!
Hi Pam, I doubt a glass of chocolate milk will cause stones. The oxalate in the chocolate will combine with the calcium in the milk and mostly not be absorbed. Regards, Fred Coe
If you have Candida would following a low oxalate diet help.
Hi Robert, No data support a role for oxalate in Candida infections. Fred
I am lactose intolerant and have been dealing with kidney stones. Any suggestions on how to lower my oxalate and still get calcium while not eating dairy products? Thank you!
Hi Jennifer,
Many products are fortified with calcium these days. Oat, pea, flax, coconut milk. I use A2 or Ultra filtered milks bc I too am lactose intolerant. Read this article to help understand your calcium needs and how to get them met.
Best, Jill
OK so I have just had my second kidney stone since my first one 4.5 years ago when I was 58. I have suspected SIBO, am gluten and dairy intolerant and doc put me on a BiPhasic diet right now (very restrictive)….awaiting SIBO breath test results. Healing from years of GERD. Tapered off PPI. Now this. Still waiting for the stone to pass and hopefully we can tell what it’s made of. Didn’t get the stone from years ago so don’t know what the make up was. I have come to the conclusion that if you eat healthy, plant based you have a high chance of getting stones. All 3 of us in my family who eat healthy all have had stones and all the ones who don’t have never had stones. A cruel twist. So I have tried to cross reference the biphasic and oxalate food lists anticipating that the stone will show this. Eating is no longer a pleasure it is a job and mere survival. I am grateful I have food in the first place to eat. At the same time, socially it is making me a pain in the ass to be with. Socially isolating. No spontaneity and I long for the pleasures of food, exploring and having fun with it. Running my own business, elder care, and meal preparation has become a bit much. So any guidance would be appreciated to make this easier.
Hi SophieR, Are you forming calcium oxalate stones, and if so is your urine oxalate high enough to pose an important stone risk? Although oxalate matters, other factors are often far more important so be sure you have been fully evaluated and that oxalate is a main problem for you. Regards, Fred Coe
Is there a vegetarian low-ox slate cookbook available?
Hi Rita, Not one I know about, as yet. Fred
If you are vegan, your best sources of protein are soy and beans…any suggestions if you’re forming stones and trying to limit oxalate?
Hi Laurie,
Yes. I have worked with many vegans. The problem they have with oxalate is that they eat too big a portion of the highest oxalate foods and too many times per week. Along with not getting enough calcium in their diet. And we just don’t need the amount of protein we think we do to keep us healthy and thriving. Read this for many free resources.
Best, Jill
Can you explain this?
*Miso, 1 cup, 40 mg oxalates (I assume “miso” = “miso paste”)
*Miso soup, 1 cup, 111 mg
I cup of miso paste makes about 8 cups of miso soup, so I would expect the miso soup to have about 5 mg/cup, or the miso paste to have about 555 mg/cup. Either the miso paste number is erroneously low, or the miso soup number assumes other ingredients, typically tofu, scallions, and wakame seaweed. Can I safely use miso paste in other low oxalate recipes?
My urologist has confirmed oxalate stones by 24 hour urine test and by chemical analysis of the stones themselves.
Correction, 555 mg/cup should be 888 mg/cup (8*111)
Hi William,
It is important that you get a 24 hour urine collection to see if high oxalate is the issue. There is so much more to preventing stones than simply focusing on lowering oxalate. Read this:https://kidneystonediet.com/what-is-the-kidney-stone-diet/
You can safely have 100 mg/oxalate per day. Get your daily calcium needs met. Have some miso soup here and there. I worry way more about the sodium in the soup-
Best, Jill
I am confused. I have high normal or high calcium in my blood but just had bilateral stones and this was my third stone episode. I am also on statins. So not comfortable eating meat and dairy in large amounts for my heart etc I am a 74 year old male. My main question is can you explain how you would have too much calcium in blood but not enough in urine etc? I was also told my d levels were too low. Also what about magnesium? Can you talk about d magnesium and calcium take?
Hi Mike, Elevated blood calcium is a major medical issue until its cause is known and attended to. I gather your urine calcium is low and you have formed stones. I guess – not enough information to do more – the stones are uric acid and not calcium based, and that your increased blood calcium is either from medications – like thiazide diuretics, because the blood was not drawn fasting, or there is some systemic cause. I suspect kidney function may be a bit reduced. Diet calcium intake, evaluation of the high blood calcium, and cause of stones are beyond what I can do at this distance except to urge your work with your physicians to resolve the uncertainties so treatment can be instituted. Regards, Fred Coe
Hello,
I had liver resection two years ago (they removed 25% of it) and now find that oxalates in my diet amp up pain in the cut site. I have heard that oxalates collect in damaged tissue – is that true? If so, it explains why my pain is so bad if I consume oxalates.
Thank you,
Cathy
Hi Cathy, Oxalate is not likely to crystallize in your liver, and sans crystals oxalate has no known biological function or risk. So I do not think oxalate matters at all as best I know. Regards, Fred
I eat 3 eggs nearly every morning, 1/2 cup (precooked) oatmeal with honey, cinnamon, and a handful of walnuts and about 1/4 whole milk. Many mornings include a banana and 8 oz OJ.
Is there anything here that is contributing to high oxalate and frequent stone formations?
Hi Kevin, your breakfast seems safe – the few walnuts have some oxalate but there is milk. I would look elsewhere for the cause of stones. Here is a much better place to begin, as oxalate is not usually the main cause of stones. Regards, Fred Coe
I have been told to use the Harvard oxalate list and do appreciate your making it available. However, there are a number of foods – specifically hemp hearts, chia seeds, and sesame seeds -which plant-based diets use for protein, but which do not appear on the list. Could you please find a way to tell us the oxalate levels of these “pillars” of the vegan diet?
Hi Juanita,
Other sources state chia and sesame seeds are very high. I have heard varying notions of hemp hearts. Most people get stones bc they overeat the same higher oxalate foods many times a week in large quantities without enough calcium. Please vary your fruits and veggies and eat within normal portion sizes. Get your calcium from non dairy milk that have been fortified with calcium.
Hope that helps, Jill
I’ve had full gastric bypass back in 2009 and have dropped over 217 lbs. My problem is now i can’t stop producing kidney stones. my last surgery was 10/15/2020, 3 size 7’s and 2 size 5’s in one kidney. i have trouble drinking water, can’t stand the taste of it, but have no problem with flavored waters. would flavored waters still be considered water?, there’s 33 oz. per bottle. how many of these should i be drinking a day? i’ve had people telling me to cut down on coffee consumption,is that right or did i misunderstand it.
Hi John, Post Roux en Y bypass stones are not uncommon, in part because of increased urine oxalate but also reduced citrate and sometimes urine volume. You need 24 hour urine and blood testing do guide treatment which is a mixture of diet, meds and fluids. In general any fluid is fine and the gauge is the 24 hour urine volume not intake – about 2.5 l/d is the goal. Coffee is not a problem. Regards, Fred Coe
I have been doing a lot of research on High oxalate levels in the blood. I have kidney stones and do not know the type I have. I had high sodium levels in the urine and have take some time to get that within the quide lines that they want to see, now the sodium is good but the oxalate is high and I have been asked to watch what I eat for oxalate.
I think the article that you have written is very good and makes a lot of sense. I do have one question. I have read in some articles that magnesium is good to help reduce oxalate, is this true? what about calcium and magnesium supplements, would you recommend taking those?
Regards
Ron Hall
Hi Ron, I think you mean oxalate levels in urine, not blood. I gather you form stones and have high urine oxalate and sodium, the latter corrected with diet. Usual causes of high urine oxalate are low diet calcium and/or high diet oxalate. Given you are watching the latter, have you also seen to the diet calcium? As for magnesium, it will complex oxalate, not prevent its absorption, and I have no data to support it being a stone prevention. Regards, Fred Coe
Hi doctor. I had my first C/O stone about 45 years ago and was following low oxalate diet for several years. After no further issues, I eventually returned to standard American diet. Ten years ago another stone caused problems and I had basket retrieval. I was told then that I had a rock garden – many stones in various sizes one of which is very large. Do have any recommendation for C/O diet again? I have many stones that rarely cause any trouble. No doctor had made any comment about diet in 45 plus years. Too late or just lucky?
Hi Gaye,
It’s Jill and I help answer the diet related questions on Dr. Coe’s site. First, getting a 24 hour urine collection is very important to understand why you are forming stones. Second, the kidney stone diet is a diet that all people should follow: low sodium, low added sugar, get your daily calcium, moderate meat protein and staying away from the highest oxalate foods. Read what the kidney stone diet is here. Much more than just lowering oxalate.
You want to make sure these smaller stones do not get larger. Please take care and know that it is NEVER too late-
Jill
I am a 30-year vegetarian and am lactose-intolerant. My doctor advised increasing calcium and limiting oxalates, but had no suggestions on how to do that with my restrictions. I last had a stone 2 years ago and recent scans show “sand-like stones” in one kidney that we are hoping to avoid having grow. All of my bloodwork was normal and the stone I did pass was calcium oxalate. Also, I usually have 2 lattes per day with oat milk; is that any better than almond and soy?
Hi Alison,
I am hoping you had a 24 hour urine collection done so you can see why your stones formed. Please read this to help you understand what the kidney stone diet is all about-
Best, Jill
Hi Jill,
I did, and the urologist said the only thing that was at all abnormal was volume (1588), but all other measures – calcium, oxalate, citrate – were normal: calcium 152, oxalate 22 (also notes 0.25mml/24 hours), citrate 664. The doctor gave his “routine advise” since nothing in the analysis pointed to a reason for the stone formation from a dietary perspective (it was a 100% calcium oxalate stone). So I am left trying to figure out if I do need to make dietary changes, and if so, the best way to do so. I did read this page and the others, but can’t figure out if it applies when 24 hour urine values are normal.
Hi Alison,
Couple of questions. Did you already change your diet to low oxalate and watch the other aspects of the kidney stone diet (KSD) as well? What was your sodium level?
The KSD is a healthy diet for everyone. it just happens to prevent new stones as well. Low sugar and salt, get your fluids, moderate protein, enough calcium. Can’t go wrong.
j
I was under the impression that caffeine was bad and helped cause kidney stones, is this true? I was just confused because you say coffee is fine.. does it have some other benefit that makes the caffeine not such a problem? Or do you need to add a lot of milk to it? I usually would drink it black with like 4 packs of splenda, but gave that up (and my mountain dew addiction) when I got my first stone 2 years ago.
Hi Tim,
Too much coffee leads to much caffeience and that can be dehyrdrating. A cup or two per day is perfectly fine. A normal cup, not a big as my head Starbucks cup.
jill
I have a 1mm stone the Dr. Told me just to drink lots of fluids…. what do I do? He didn’t do lab test just found out in my CT scan ….
Hi Magdalena,
Start here:https://kidneystonediet.com/what-is-the-kidney-stone-diet/
Jill
What flour would you recommend to bake with for cakes and cookies?
Hi JacqueO,
You can use regular flour. Remember, it is portion not perfection regarding oxalate. AND, getting your daily calcium needs met.
j
Hello, I was curious if any correlation was made between water intake and oxalate non binding in the kidney or whatever that term is 🙂 It seems to be that water is the #1 importance even if it’s in tea etc so at some level it makes sense that it could overcome oxalate especially combined with the KSD.
Hi Kyle,
Fluid intake is important to keep you hydrated and flush out the crystals created. Calcium helps lower oxalate. Read this:https://kidneystonediet.com/what-is-the-kidney-stone-diet/
Best, Jill
I am a little confused, I have started to have some kidney function problems that are mild but certainly a sign of concern and a friend suggested oxalates as part of the cause – along with necessary and chronic use of several medications. Researching high oxalate foods and foods hard on kidney function, well they seem to contradict each other. Can you shed any light on this?
The one thing I can say is the last few months I have been drinking an enormous amount of iced tea leaving he tea bad in the container. Sadly I will stop tis at once. Is instant tea without sweetener ok? I am a diabetic. Thank you so much for your input.
Hi James, Reduced kidney function in someone who does not form stones is rarely due to oxalate apart from rare conditions in which oxalate is produced in abnormally large amounts. However, since the issue has come up, a simple 24 hour kidney stone oriented urine will provide oxalate excretion and from it your physicians can determine if there is any relationships between oxalate and your reduced kidney function. Possibly your diabetes has something to do with your reduced kidney function, which your physician will certainly know. Regards, Fred Coe
Hi,
Informative & helpful post. I am 26 years old. I have been a thyroid patient for the last 5 years and my PCOS was diagnosed last year. Can I go on a low oxalate diet? Does it helpful for me?
Hi Max, despite some suggestive material on the web, I know of no evidence that oxalate has anything to do with polycystic ovary syndrome. A recent study of women with stones and/or not PCOS showed no differences in urine oxalate. Androgen may increase urine oxalate, and indirect evidence links high androgen levels – as in PCOS – to higher urine oxalate. I could find nothing else of seeming value – results are from “PCOS and oxalate” using Google search – scholar. Regards, Fred Coe
Most of the foods on the high oxalate list you wouldn’t want to eat anyway if you want to have some semblance of any kind health.
Hi Patti,
True, but there are healthy foods that people are overeating that are very high in oxalate.
Best, Jill
I’m so confused as to what I can and can not eat. I have one Dr. Telling me to eat a list of foods to raise my potassium/ magnesium levels. All of which are on the list of foods to avoid on the high oxilate list. Then there is the list of foods that I have to avoid for high cholesterol and they are on the list of things I should be eating to lower my oxilate numbers. And then their is my list of foods to help slow the progression of my osteoporosis. And everything on that list is on one list or another to avoid. At this rate the only thing I will be able to consume is water and supplements. It’s getting so frustrating!
Hi Mary,
This is the single most common complaint I hear every single day. Please find my article on exactly what the kidney stone diet is. My website has plenty of stuff to help you sort it all out. Go here: kidneystonediet.com
Best, Jill
I have a 7mm kidney stone. Can you tell you what should I eat? I’m confused.
Hi Wajahat,
It’s more than a reply here can give you. Read this:kidneystonediet.com
Jill
I would like to know if replacing a Peanut butter and Jelly sandwich with a Sunbutter sandwich (nut spread made with Sunflower Seeds instead of Peanut Butter) once a week would be an acceptable thing to do on a low oxalate diet.
Hi Jenny,
Sure would be acceptable. Getting your daily amount of calcium is just as important. Read this: kidneystonediet.com
Jill
Can you explain if/why calcium supplements are seemingly not recommended to assure 1000mg daily intake? Is it harmful to take them?
Hi Monica, They are harder to use than food. To work well against oxalate they must be timed with meals that contain oxalate. For bones, they need to be with the larger meals. But with care, they are usable – your physician needs to supervise their use. Regards, Fred Coe
Can you please comment on the bean and legume group of food.
Are there any to completely avoid?
Others that are low or moderate oxylate?
Thank so much.
Hi Paula,
Beans are high in general. My patients still eat them, just not huge bean bowls anymore. EAting beans once or twice a week in NORMAL portion sizes of beans and all foods and getting your daily calcium needs met will help lower your oxalate levels.
Best, Jill
How does lemon juice in water affect oxalate absorption?
For instance would 1 glass at each meal help the body not absorb the oxalate, or is that just a myth?
Hi Tia, lemon juice will not reduce oxalate absorption. Calcium in food does that. Take a look at this review of the matter. Regards, Fred Coe
I can’t seem to find oatmeal on your list. I do see Oatmeal cereal. Is something like rolled oats or steel-cut oats ok for breakfast?
Hi David,
My patients all eat oatmeal and continue to have low oxalate levels based upon their follow up urine collections. GEtting your calcium needsm et every day is even more important to lower oxalate. Short answer? You can have it.
Jill
Great Article and finally a sense of humour when its needed! I am a lifelong potato chip addict (no joke) and I guess its caught up with me. Big changes, but subtle integration for long term is what Im planning. My Question, one that the nephrologist I recently saw didn’t explain is, how long does it take to reduce oxalates? Im assuming its a long buildup, so would it be the same to reduce back to normal range?
Hi Tanya, Urine oxalate will fall the day you alter your diet assuming you are the common person whose urine oxalate mainly reflects diet. But be sure this is the right course for you. Have you been evaluated fully?Regards, Fred Coe
Can I use magnesium citrate to bind to oxalates rather than calcium citrate?
Hi Gwyneth, Magnesium citrate may be too much like a laxative for common use and it also fails to provide calcium for your bones. I cannot much endorse it. Regards, Fred Coe
My husband is a stone former, both oxalate and small amounts of uric acid stones. We cannot get clear advice on daily protein intake, just general advice to lower protein intake. But protein does not contain oxalate and should not be an issue for him? So why the general “lower protein” advice for kidney stone patients? In his case, with mainly oxalate stones, what is a good daily protein intake amount in gm/kg body weight? Thank You
Hi Wendy, Protein has little to do with oxalate, and all your husband needs is a normal protein intake of 0.8-1 gm/kg body weight/day. But oxalate may not be important depending on the urine level of it. Here is a good overview of stone prevention. See where he fits in, and if his treatment is on target.