Questions And Answers For Kidney Crystals | Kidney C.O.P

The individual active ingredients in Kidney C.O.P.® have all been shown in clinical studies to inhibit calcium oxalate crystals. Four (4) of these ingredients are FDA GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) Ingredients. The fifth active ingredient is the ground stem of the Musa Paradisiaca, a species of banana which is a common food utilized for centuries throughout the world.

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Calcium Oxalate Crystals – Calcium oxalate crystals are the most common type of crystals. They are usually made of calcium and oxalate (a natural chemical found in most foods), but are sometimes made of calcium and phosphate. Oxalate is a naturally occurring substance found in food. Some fruits and vegetables, as well as nuts and chocolate, have high oxalate levels. Your liver also produces oxalate. Dietary factors, high doses of vitamin D, intestinal bypass surgery and several metabolic disorders can increase the concentration of calcium or oxalate in urine. Calcium oxalate crystals may also occur in the form of calcium phosphate.

Struvite Crystals – Struvite crystals can happen when you have certain types of urinary tract infections in which bacteria make ammonia that builds up in your urine. Struvite crystals are made of magnesium, ammonium and phosphate. These crystals can grow quickly and become quite large, sometimes with few symptoms or little warning.

Uric Acid Crystals – Uric acid crystals form when your urine is often too acidic. Uric acid can form crystals by itself or with calcium. Uric acid crystals can form in people who don’t drink enough fluids or who lose too much fluid, those who eat a high-protein diet, and those who have gout. Certain genetic factors also may increase your risk of Uric acid crystals.

Cystine Crystals – These crystals form in people with a hereditary disorder that causes the kidneys to excrete too much of certain amino acids (cystinuria).

Other Crystals – Other, rarer types of crystals also can occur.

Did you have a 24-hour urine study to determine the composition of urine in relation to crystal formation and the type of crystals?

Did you pass your crystal into a screen/basket/filter and provide the crystal(s) to your physician for composition analysis?

Did your surgeon have a sample of your crystals secured for analysis?

You should ask your physician to inform you as to what kind of crystal you had in the past. Approximately 80% of crystals are made up of calcium and most of these are calcium oxalate.

Crystals are the formation of crystalline structures in the urinary tract (which includes the kidneys, ureters and bladder). Crystals form when your urine contains more crystal forming substances — such as calcium, oxalate and uric acid — than the fluid in your urine can dilute. At the same time, your urine may lack substances that prevent crystals from sticking together, creating an ideal environment for crystals to form.

Knowing the type of crystal helps determine the cause and may give clues on how to reduce your risk of getting more crystals.

As high as 50% of prior crystal sufferers will have a recurrence within five years of experiencing their first crystal.

Diet however can help and should complement any other preventative measures.

Sweating, saunas, and heavy exercise may be good for your health, but they also may lead to crystals. Why? Loss of water through sweating – whether due to these activities or just the heat of summer—leads to less urine production. The more you sweat, the less you urinate, which allows for crystal-causing minerals to settle and bond in the kidneys and urinary tract.

It is optimum to hydrate with water (H2O). One of the best measures you can take to avoid crystals is to drink plenty of water, causing you to urinate a lot. Drink at least six 8 ounce glasses throughout the day, not all at one time. Remember always to keep very well hydrated when engaging in exercise or activities that cause a substantial amount of sweating.

Oxalate is naturally found in many foods, including fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, grains, legumes, and even chocolate and tea. Some examples of specific foods that contain high levels of oxalate include: peanuts, rhubarb, spinach, beets, chocolate and sweet potatoes. Moderating intake of these foods may be beneficial for people who form calcium oxalate crystals, the leading type of crystals. A common misconception is that cutting the oxalate-rich foods in your diet alone will reduce the likelihood of forming calcium oxalate crystals. While in theory this might be true, this approach isn’t smart from an overall health perspective. Most calcium oxalate crystals are formed when oxalate binds to calcium while urine is produced by the kidneys.

It is optimum if you eat and drink calcium and oxalate-rich foods together during a meal. In doing so, oxalate and calcium are more likely to bind to one another in the stomach and intestines before the kidneys begin processing, making it less likely that calcium oxalate crystals will form.

Choose a diet low in salt. Consider using a salt substitute. A high-sodium diet can trigger calcium oxalate crystals because it increases the amount of calcium in your urine. So a low-sodium diet is recommended for the crystal prone. Current guidelines suggest limiting total daily sodium intake to 2,300 mg. If sodium has contributed to calcium oxalate crystals in the past, try to reduce your daily intake to 1,500 mg. This will also be good for your blood pressure and heart.

Continue eating calcium-rich foods, but use caution with calcium supplements. Calcium in food doesn’t have an effect on your risk of calcium oxalate crystals. Continue eating calcium-rich foods unless your doctor advises otherwise. Ask your doctor before taking calcium supplements, as these have been linked to increased risk of calcium oxalate crystals. You may reduce the risk by taking supplements with meals. Diets low in calcium can increase crystal formation in some people.

Limit animal protein. A high-protein diet reduces levels of citrate, the chemical in urine that helps prevent calcium oxalate crystals from forming. If you’re prone to crystals, limit your daily meat intake to a quantity that is no bigger than a pack of playing cards. This is also a heart-healthy portion.

Complimenting your restricted diet with the new, patented Kidney C.O.P. (Calcium Oxalate Protector) dietary supplement may also be helpful. This product contains active ingredients all shown to have positive outcomes in clinical studies in treating and preventing calcium oxalate crystals.

These risk factors include:

It is important to know that calcium oxalate crystals are more common if you have Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). These conditions affect your body’s ability to absorb fats properly. When fat is not absorbed the right way, the fat binds to calcium and leaves oxalate behind. The oxalate is then absorbed and taken to the kidney, where it can form calcium oxalate crystals.

Similarly, following gastric bypass surgery, your body absorbs less calcium from your digestive system. Because of this, higher levels of oxalate are found in the urinary tract. The build-up of oxalate can form crystals, which can form calcium oxalate crystals.

If your calcium oxalate crystals keep coming back, your healthcare provider may test you for some of these conditions. Your healthcare provider may also look at your lifestyle to help lower your risk factors or help find the cause of your forming calcium oxalate crystals.

Some Interesting Facts

The most common cause of crystal production is excess calcium in the urine (hypercalciuria). Extra calcium is normally removed from the blood by the kidneys and excreted in the urine. In hypercalciuria, excess calcium builds up in the kidneys and urine, where it combines with other waste products to form calcium oxalate crystals.

Low levels of urinary citrate, magnesium and high levels of oxalate and sodium along with inadequate urinary volume contribute to calcium oxalate crystal formation.

Calcium oxalate crystals are composed of calcium that is chemically bound to oxalate (calcium oxalate) or phosphate (calcium phosphate). Of these, calcium oxalate is much more common. The less common calcium phosphate crystals typically occur in patients with metabolic or hormonal disorders such as hyperparathyroidism and renal tubular acidosis.

Increased intestinal absorption of calcium (absorptive hypercalciuria), excessive hormone levels (hyperparathyroidism, hypervitaminosis D), and renal calcium leak (kidney defect that causes excessive calcium to enter the urine) can all cause hypercalciuria.

Prolonged inactivity also increases urinary calcium and may cause calcium oxalate crystals. (This is why astronauts in space tend to lose bone mass and form calcium oxalate crystals.)

Renal tubular acidosis (inherited condition in which the kidneys are unable to excrete acid) significantly reduces urinary citrate (a natural urinary antacid) as well as total urinary acid levels and can lead to crystal formation, usually calcium phosphate crystals.

Substances exist normally in urine that can prevent calcium oxalate crystals from developing. Magnesium, citrate, pyrophosphate and other enzymes all act in the body as a deterrent to crystals forming and attaching to the surface of kidney tubes. Having too little of these substances present in urine can trigger calcium oxalate crystals.

Certain medications such as calcium-containing antacids, loop diuretics and glucocorticoids can increase calcium secretion into the urine. Too much vitamin D can also lead to increased calcium.

Hyperparathyroidism occurs when too much parathyroid hormone is produced by the body, causing calcium to be pulled from the bones into the blood and subsequently into the urine. This helps to explain the association between calcium oxalate crystals and low bone density.

Kidney disease can cause high calcium levels in the urine when calcium is not properly absorbed back into the bloodstream.

High blood pressure and obesity have also been associated with hypercalciuria.

Some people are born with a genetic tendency to secrete excess oxalate into the urine. This condition, hyperoxaluria, is rare; most cases of hyperoxaluria arise from other causes. For one, diets rich in oxalate may place someone at risk for calcium oxalate crystals. Oxalate-rich foods include beets, chocolate, nuts, rhubarb, spinach, strawberries, tea and wheat bran. Excessive amounts of vitamin C can also increase oxalate levels, as can inflammatory bowel disease.

High amounts of dietary protein can lead to increases in both calcium and oxalate levels in the urine. The elevated protein results in lower urine pH — an acidic environment that makes it easier for calcium oxalate crystals to form. It also decreases citrate levels in the urine that help prevent calcium oxalate crystals from forming. The risks of crystal formation can often be minimized by paying close attention to diet and good hydration.

Small crystals (<6mm) usually pass on their own but often with extreme pain and taking 8 to 22 days to pass! Large crystals (>6mm) often causes infection, blockage of urine and muscle contractions thereby causing severe pain. With large crystals, outpatient surgery is often necessary. This is usually performed in an operating room under local or general anesthesia.

Issues usually happen when either small or large crystals try to move down the ureter and out of the urinary system. When the crystals begin to pass they often cause irritation or blockage which can increase pressure in the kidney above and start causing issues. This issue often builds rapidly leading to extreme challenges.

As a crystal moves down the ureter, it tends to become lodged in three locations of natural narrowing:

At the ureteropelvic junction where a partial or total obstruction happens at the place where the organ that produces urine (the kidney) and the tube that carries it to the bladder (the ureter) are joined at the crossing of the ureter over the iliac vessels or at the entrance of the ureter into the bladder.

Depending on where a crystal is located along this path, the issues associated with it can vary. Crystal issues usually start high up near the kidney then migrates towards the abdomen and eventually down towards the groin as the crystal moves further down the ureter. As a crystal is almost ready to come out, patients may feel the urge to urinate.

It is believed however that some non-obstructing calcium oxalate crystals can cause issues because they either block a small tubular structure in the kidney itself (the collecting tubules) or for other unclear reasons. Supporting this view is a recent medical journal article suggesting that the treatment of small non-obstructing “papillary” crystals may provide relief. (Gdor et al, Multi-institutional assessment of ureteroscopic laser papillotomy for chronic pain associated with papillary calcifications, J Urol 2011)

The US healthcare system has an estimated cost of over $10 Billion annually for main crystal interventions*

Despite the fact crystals have an overall low risk for bad outcomes, procedures to treat crystals lead to complications that require hospitalization or emergency care for one in seven patients.*

$30,000 per patient is the average cost of an emergency room visit for crystals*

Outpatient surgery for crystal removal can cost up to $40,000. The average cost in the USA is $19,000! **

Patients

Hopefully you have healthcare insurance as surgically treating a crystal will be expensive even in most cases even when you have insurance!

WORK PLACE INSURANCE

~50% Patients have $1000+ deductible**

Average deductible for single coverage is $1,836 in small firms, compared to $1,105 for workers in large firms.

MEDICARE

After your deductible is met, an individual typically pays 20% of the Medicare -approved amount ($1,288 is the deductible for each benefit period but that can change in the future)

COMMERCIAL

Insurance plans after the ACA or “Obamacare” was implemented have been standardized into “metal” tiers – bronze, silver, gold, and platinum.

For an example, a bronze plan has an actuarial value of approximately 60%, meaning that the insurer expects to pay for 60% of total costs associated with covered medical services, and that – as a group – the enrollees would pay for the remaining 40% of total costs through their combined co-payments, coinsurance, and deductibles.***

OUT-OF-POCKET MAXIMUM

Health plans sold in the Marketplace must have an out-of-pocket maximum for in-network services of no more than $6,850 for an individual plan and $13,700 for a family plan.

For better or worse, the ACA under “Trumpcare” is likely to change deductibles and out of pocket expense for all of the above.