A beer a day helps keep kidney stones away

A new study published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology has found that certain beverages can increase a person’s chance of developing kidney stones.

The study found that daily doses of sugar-sweetened drinks can increase the chance of developing kidney stones, while other beverages can help to reduce the risk of developing the condition.

The study looked at data on over 190,000 adults, mostly middle-aged, who had never had kidney stones. Over an eight-year timespan 4,462 developed the stones and those who drank the most sugar-sweetened beverages were the most likely to find themselves with kidney stones.

The Washington Post reported that those who drank one or more sugar-sweetened colas a day had a 23% higher risk than those who drank them once a week; risk for sugar-sweetened clear, non-cola sodas was 33% higher for those who drank one a day, against one a week.

In terms of lowering the risk of kidney stones beer came out on top, when consumed once a day compared to once a week. The risk fell by 41% for a daily beer, but wine also proved beneficial with a 33% reduction in risk with a daily versus weekly glass of white wine and 31% for red wine.

Other drinks also saw the kidney stone risk fall, the study found that the risk fell 26% for caffeinated coffee, 16% for decaffeinated coffee, 12% for orange juice and 11% for tea.

The researchers behind the study did add that all the information came from the responses on questionnaires given by those taking part in the study and as such the serving sizes would have differed for different drinks.