Water is best. You can also drink ginger ale, lemon-lime sodas, and fruit juices. Drink enough liquids throughout the day to make at least 2 quarts (2 liters) of urine every 24 hours. Drink enough to have light-colored urine.
Apple cider vinegar contains acetic acid which helps dissolve kidney stones. In addition to flushing out the kidneys, apple cider vinegar can also decrease any pain caused by the stones. In addition, water and lemon juice can help flush the stones and prevent future kidney stones.
Drink plenty of water: Kidney stones need to be flushed out of the body so be sure to drink lots of water to keep them moving along. Minimize coffee, alcohol, tea, and soda. while passing a kidney stone as these can cause dehydration and make the pain worse. Remember: hydration is key for both passing and preventing!
Green tea may also lower your risk of developing kidney stones. The key to making a perfect cup of green tea is to drink it unsweetened.
While coffee and most teas contain small amounts of oxalate, some studies suggest that drinking tea and coffee decreases the risk of kidney stones. However, you should avoid too much black tea, as it has four times the concentration of oxalate compared to green tea.
The first way to pass a kidney stone is to drink plenty of water. Drinking water can help flush out your kidneys, as hydration is key for both passing and preventing the formation of kidney stones. Instead of aiming for the typical eight glasses of water per day, strive for at least 12 glasses to speed up the process.
If you're looking to dissolve kidney stones fast, you can rely on apple cider vinegar. Made from fermenting apples and endowed with phosphoric, citric and acetic acids, apple cider vinegar makes urine acidic and helps to dissolve most types of kidney stones quickly.
Nausea and blood in the urine may also be experienced. “Once a stone has reached your bladder, you've made it through the worst part. Until you pass it, you may feel pinching or stinging when you urinate, or a feeling of not being able to empty your bladder fully.”
Winners and losers
But drinks with sugar in them were not all bad. Apple juice, grapefruit juice, and tomato juice did not raise or lower risk of stones. Coffee, decaffeinated coffee, tea, red wine, white wine, orange juice, and beer were the winners. People who used more had a lower risk of new stones.
How much apple cider vinegar should I drink for kidney stones? Mix 2 tablespoons into 6 to 8 ounces of water for best results, and drink it all day.
Once you start feeling the pain of a kidney stone, it can take anywhere between one to four weeks for the stone to actually pass.
Lemons contain citrate, which helps prevent calcium from building up and forming stones in your kidneys. Interestingly, the benefit doesn't seem to be present in oranges, making lemon a unique tool in kidney stone prevention.
In this procedure, the surgeon inserts a narrow, flexible instrument called a ureteroscope through the urethral opening, passing it through the bladder to where the stone is located in the ureter or kidney. A small laser fiber is passed through the ureteroscope to break up and remove the stone.
Avoid processed and fast foods, canned soups and vegetables, and lunch meats. Look for foods labeled: sodium free, salt free, very low sodium, low sodium, reduced or less sodium, light in sodium, no salt added, unsalted, and lightly salted.
Citrus Fruits – Citrate, found in citrus fruits, helps block the formation of kidney stones and can help keep you safe from them. Examples of citrus fruits that you should include in your kidney stone diet are oranges, lemons, and grapefruit.
Eating foods rich in potassium helps prevent kidney stones from forming. Some foods that are high in potassium are bananas, cantaloupe, honeydew melon, orange juice and papaya.
In fact, including foods rich in dietary calcium, such as milk, yogurt, cheese, fortified milk alternatives, white beans, tahini, almonds and chia seeds, will actually decrease your risk of developing kidney stones. Dietary calcium binds to oxalate before it gets to the kidneys helping to prevent stones.