Men’s Health. Magnesium and Kidney Stone Prevention

Kidney stones occur when the microscopic debris excreted in the urine becomes too concentrated to pass freely out of the kidneys into the bladder.

Kidney stones are quite common in the general population.Risk factors for kidney stones include a history of high blood pressure, chronic dehydration, and a low dietary intake of magnesium. (Hall WD et al., Risk factors for kidney stones in older women in the southern United States. Am J Med Sci., vol. 322, no. 1, pp.12-18, 2001

Up to 15 percent of white men and 6 percent of all women develop one stone, with recurrence in about half of these people. Approximately one person in a thousand in the United States is hospitalized annually with excruciatingly painful stones trapped in their urinary passages. The pain begins in the lower back and can radiate across the abdomen or into the genitals or the inside of the thigh.

Most stones are made up of calcium phosphate, calcium oxalate, or uric acid. Calcium stones are seen chiefly in men, often with a family history. Calcium phosphate and calcium oxalate alone are responsible for almost 85% of all stones. Uric acid stones make up 5-10% of all stones. They are also seen mostly in men, half of whom have gout. The remaining 5 percent are rare stones that can be formed during kidney infections. Diagnosis is made by urinalysis and X-ray.

Dr. Carolyn Dean, Medical Director Vida Costa Spa, author of The Magnesium Miracle.

A research study found:

“…urinary magnesium concentrations are abnormally low in relation to urinary calcium concentrations in more than 25% of patients with kidney stones. A supplementary magnesium intake corrects this abnormality and prevents the recurrence of stones. Magnesium seems to be as effective against stone formation as diuretics. …Magnesium, possibly added to drinking water, may well play a role in the primary prevention of renal (kidney) calcium stones.

“Magnesium in the physiopathology and treatment of renal calcium stones PRESSE MED. (FRANCE), 1987, 16/1 (25-27)

Some of the causes of kidney stone formation are a diet high in sugar, fructose, meat, alcohol, coffee/tea. Dehydration is another factor which concentrates calcium in the urine. Soft drinks containing phosphoric acid also encourage kidney stones in some people by pulling calcium out of the bones and depositing them in the kidneys. Taking calcium without magnesium can promote kidney stones. When there is more calcium than magnesium, kidney stones can form.

Besides watching your diet as per the above, supplementing with magnesium will help because magnesium keeps calcium dissolved in the blood so it will not form kidney stones.