Everything posted here by others is true in my 35 years experiance as a healer. However there is one thing not mentioned and its kind of a bighie but also not on very many radars yet. Oxalate overload is another major cause of UTIs, particularly look at when infection is not present but there are symptoms of irritation and sometimes cloudy urine. This often coexists with infections and renders persons more susceptible to frequent infections, as the damage done by oxalate crystals in the urinary tract is physical...think of it as nano-sized shards of broken glass, it cuts up the tissues and causes tiny fibrotic scarring.
Citrates of any kind help, as they break the crystals down into smaller and different shapes. Under electron microscope instead of long sharp needles and pointy crystals you will see tiny rounded balls...the wee balls are easier for the body to eliminate with less damage.
This damage can happen anywhere in the body and NOBODY is immune to it. There is no genetic advantage that makes a body better able to handle these things. If intake exceeds the 50 mg per day the body can safely eliminate (thats a mere five leaves of spinach, folks!) the excess gets stashed in whatever parts of the body are weakest for whatever reason--injury, illness, genetics, etc. Its like clutter in a house getting stuffed into the back of a closet because one doesnt know where else to shove it. Over time this builds up and the clutter busts out of the closet and starts causing real problems. Oxalates have even been found in brain and nerve tissues, and may be a major factor in development of dementia and other neuro diseases. Pretty much everything associated with "old age" is actually the result of oxalate overload, imcluding arthritis, bad bines, brown spots, stiffness, vision issues, prostate and blader and kidney issues (it is THE primary cause of both kidney stones as well as CKD and good luck getting any doctor to tell you that). Oxalates slowly and steadily wreck havoc. And yes they are associated with cancer too, as it also affects the immune system. Hard to diagnosis because there is no one set of consistent symptoms that everyone has---every single person has a different experience and the symptoms mimic humdreds of other conditions.
Oxalates are present in diet in many of the "healthy" foods we are being encouraged of late to ingest in unuallly large amounts...Spinach is one of the worst offenders, followed by almonds, sweet potatoes, beets, beet greens and chard, quinoa, buckwheat, potatoes, whole grains and most brans...there are more but these are among the very worst.
They bind readily to minerals and are the main cause (its not just soil depletion) of the many mineral deficiencies many now struggle in vain to overcome via diet...often by eating more of the offending "superfoods" .
Since eliminating oxalates from my diet two months ago I no longer require massive intake of mineral supplements. My back pain is about 60 percent better too, my feet dont hurt anymore, my flexibility is improving...its like the clock is turning backwards for a change!
This is a highly nuanced topic. I am of the opinion that every person who cares to pursue a low oxalate diet whould do some reading and research, and will refer all of you to Sally K. Norton and her superbly researched book "Toxic Superfoods". She has many interviews up on youtube and so forth as well, all good starting points for what I assure you will be an eye-opening and life-changing journey.
I agree with Sally...take it SLOW. Assess your personal oxalate overload situation and then phase them out gradually. Oxalate dumping is a real thing, and it can cause major detox upheavals and serious pain, it can even be life-threatening if the overload is very old/large...so of particular concern as one gets older or among those who have spent a fair bit of time as vegans, which should be viewed as the same thing as working with an elderly person in terms of total oxalate load.
Pleae, all of you, Do your homework on this one. Its a very serious situation. None of us is immune. It is very sneaky.
Once you really understand it, please tell others. We need massive public awareness to overcome what is a truly massive and, imo very deliberate, level of brainwashing regarding diet.
PS--One thing NOT mentioned by Sally or pretty much anyone yet, is that even if you ingest zero oxalates, for instance are on a carnivore diet, you can STILL have a problem with oxalates. This is because the body can and will make them out of PUFA fats. This occurs via converson of pufa to glyoxal, which then converts to oxalate (which is actually just two
carbon dioxide molecules stuck together so you wouldnt think its so nasty, but it is). So carnovores do not get an automatic free pass either, of they get pufa from
chicken and pork. The diet of the animal has a large impact here. For the details see the blogs of Chris Masterjohn, PhD. He is the only one who has mentioned this that I could find.
Good luck, I hope you all have as much success with this as I have, or more!
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