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Diagnosed with a kidney stone. Could my tap water be a contributor?

Posted , 3 users are following.

bear82
bear82

Hello all,

     Last week I drove myself to the ER because of an agonizing pain I have never before felt. The pain was on my left, towards my back.  They gave me morphine which took the pain away in a hurry, and me pee in a cup which they said blood was present in my urine. Afterwards they put me through a CT scan and found a 2mm kidney stone.  They gave me a painkiller to take home for the pain  and said to drink plenty of fluids to help the stone pass.  A few days went by and I didn't have any pain, except a small attack here and there.  A few more days went by with nothing at all, then today ( August 15, 2017 ) I woke up with an agonizing pain on my left side and back that lasted 12 hours with no break in the pain. I peed and peed and crawled to my bed from the bathroom all day long. The painkiller had no effect on this level of pain. I kinda figured it might have been the stone moving it's way through. Sure enough, just before it came out I felt like I was peeing fire. It burned like crazy! Everytime I use the bathroom to pee I would do so in a cup. Well that burning pee was my signal that it had come out! And instantly the pain stopped.  It is such a tiny object! I was amazed at how a small thing as that could be such a painful nightmare. It turned white after it dried. I spoke to my mother and we came to something to really think about...... Could my water have contributed to my stone? I live in an area that the water is pretty high in calcium. My ugly little toilet has a nice calcium build up in it as well. My doctor said my stone was probably caused by dehydration, but I drink 12 glasses of water everyday. I'm also a health food junky, and I exercise moderately.  I typically eat a lot of antioxidant rich foods, fish, and colored veggies with some leafy greens, healthy fats like hummus,and herbal teas. I don't eat a lot of fish either. And even whole dairy.  But I can't find any info if high calcium content can contribute to kidney stones?? I just moved here 4 months ago. And I drink a lot of water. Never had a problem with kidneys or stones till I moved here. Does anyone have any thoughts or info on this theory of mine? 

0 likes, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • sarah87162
    sarah87162 bear82

    Posted

    Not sure about the water. I have a huge kidney stone which is too big to pass so am waiting to have it surgically removed. Every time I do a urine sample it says there is blood in it. This is to do with the stone. My pain comes and goes, never know when it is going to come back.

    Hope this is the end of your pain.

    Sarah

  • Pillsling
    Pillsling bear82

    Posted

    Just passed my 3rd stone over a 15 year period so maybe I could contribute a bit here. I definitely think hard water has to do with it. Another thing I noticed is you have mentioned that you eat good amount of green veggies. Spinach is the worst offender and is often contraindicated to people who get stones, due to its high oxalate content. My hypothesis is that the high calcium in tap water combined with high oxalate content in green veggies to form the stone. Congratulations on passing the stone btw! I know the relief and jubiliant feeling.
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