Diet: from food to stone

Dietary factors have been shown to influence urine composition and modulate the risk of kidney stone disease. With the rising prevalence of stone disease in many industrialized nations, dietary modification as therapy to improve lithogenic risk factors and prevent stone recurrence has gained appeal, as it is both relatively inexpensive and safe. While some dietary measures, such as a high fluid intake, have been shown in long-term randomized clinical trials to have durable effectiveness, other dietary factors have been subjected to only short-term clinical or metabolic studies and their efficacy has been inferred. Herein, we review the current literature regarding the role of diet in stone formation, focusing on both the effect on urinary stone risk factors and the effect on stone recurrence.