Abstract

DIETARY PLANTS FOR THE PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF KIDNEY STONES

Tejal A. Tagad* and Kanchan Jadhav

ABSTRACT

There is an old and famous fact: The garden is the poor man's pharmacy and the treatment of every single disease is hidden in nature. Urolithiasis is a complex process arising from a series of different physicochemical events such as supersaturation, nucleation, growth, aggregation and retention in the kidneys. Kidney stones are the oldest and most common known disease of the urinary tract system. Several human studies have shown that diets with higher consumption of vegetables and fruits play a role in preventing kidney stones. Nephrolithiasis affects all countries in the world with an approximate global lifetime prevalence of 15 to 20%.In India, 12% of the world's population is expected to have kidney stones. The aim of this study was to establish a connection between various nutritional factors in kidney stone formation. Dietary factors play an important role in the development of kidney stones. Simple dietary changes cansignificantly reduce the risk of developing nephrolithiasis, especially in the vulnerable population. The main mechanisms of these food plants and their isolated phytonutrients in the treatment of urolithiasis include a diuretic, antispasmodic and antioxidant effect, as well as an inhibitory effect on crystallization, nucleation and aggregation of crystals. In this review, we have provided an overview of these food plants, their main chemical components and their possible mechanisms of action.

Keywords: Urolithiasis, kidney stones, dietary plants, nephrolithiasis, antioxidants, antispasmodics, diuretics.