Drinking only soda for 6 years?

Good for you for being careful about what you eat. Leave it here, though, because she will eat and suffer from what you eat.

Don’t criticize someone else’s choices, just explain why you won’t choose the same way. And, you can always say, “because I don’t want to get kidney stones.”

@Feta Like @gailcalled speculates, she might think you are just picking a fight with her. (You don’t rub me that way at all for the record but old people are stubborn in their ways to the core! I once gave my mother in law advice, she’s 60 years old, and she used her age as an excuse to counter my perfect logic of wanting to keep the house clean for better health reasons). I’m not sure the doctors will go into full detail, they are not nutritionist after all. By practice, they will mention something quick and prescribe medicine, that’s just what they do.

And yes just from the drinks alone kidney stones can happen. (Kidneys are the storage/transport of all liquid beverage) My friend had kidney stones at the age of 22 she was very athletic healthy through high school she just ended up drinking alot of soda and alcohol post high school and developed the stones.

Also I know what you mean by junk. When it’s there and it’s all that’s available there really is no choice to avoid it.

When the stone comes out they will analyze it and see what it is made of. Once they know they can advise her on what to avoid eating and what to eat and drink so she is less likely to develop one again. Having enough liquid is helpful in avoiding kidney stones, but it doesn’t matter what liquid—sort of. Liquid is liquid in terms of hydration as long as it isn’t alcohol, but certain drinks can add to the accumulation of calcium or oxilates or even uric acid, which can lead to kidney stones. Liquid can help keep crystals from forming that can give kidney stones. It can run in families also, a genetic component, but environment counts also. Many more men get kidney stones than women. Certain ethnicities get more. Men in the middle east get them much more often than European decent Americans for instance. The two groups also get kidney stones from the accumulation of different materials, possibly from the differences in their diets and genetics.

Also, some medications can cause them. Some antibiotics say right on the bottle to drink with a full glass of water. This is specifically to avoid crystals forming into stones. If she recently took a med that might have caused it.

@Feta A lot of the time, we don’t realize that healthy food is more expensive by far than cheaper foods, so maybe it is something your mom grew up with and got comfortable with. dont’ criticize her if it’s a financial issue, just help her make affordable and better choices.

Don’t blame her or be mean, just love her and tell her you want to help her be more healthy. Maybe volunteer to make a healthy dinner for her, or take a walk with her, etc…participate in a healthy lifestyle with her.

I thought I would add that foods like spinach, berries, some nuts and other seemingly very “healthy” foods are high in oxalates, which can contribute to certain types of kidney stones. Also, animal prtein if the stone was eric acid related. So, don’t berate your mom, let the doctors tell her how she can try to prevent them in the future. You can also tell her you are interested and do some research yourself. Sure it is better not to drink soda everyday, I also think drinking milk isn’t good for us, but you need more information before you accuse her of doing A leads to B. my mom has been drinking diet soda since I can remember and never had a kidney stone, I am sure your mom can pull out similar examples and will dismiss whatever you say if she wants to keep drinking her soda.

Yes it is possible that your step mother’s poor diet and lack of adequate water and other poor lifestyle habits caused her to develop kidney stones. Unfortunately some people seem to just not give a damn about their health. Perhaps a good medical doctor or a counsellor could help your step mother see what she is doing to herself and help her to change health habits for the good. On the other hand don’t beat yourself up if she refuses to change after seeing what she is doing to herself. After all it is her life and she is in charge of that.

I developed three kidney stones when I was in my 20’s from taking too many vitamins and not enough water. Suddenly I was in pain, peeing a lot of blood and crying for help. A Urologist told me to cool it on the vitamins, eat a healthy diet and drink plenty of water. Within 2 months I peed out 3 kidney stones (one was 5.5 mm in diameter) and a pile of what looked like sand. That was 27 years ago and I haven’t had a problem since.

Good health!

Do what you know is best for yourself without judging others. Set a good example.

Well my intent wasn’t to pick a fight with or talk badly about her…I’m just concerned that her unhealthy choices affect my entire family.
Because she only buys junk food and considers canned, sugary, fruit as “good enough” for me when I ask for fruit. She doesn’t exercise and that leads to her not understanding when me or my dad want to go to the gym.
And also huge medical bills for things that she could’ve prevented.

I too drink only diet soda (Polar Diet Birch Beer) for years. My husband swears the Polar stock declined when I stopped drinking it. I hate water but I thought I would try it. After slowing weaning myself off my 2 -liter bottles a day of Birch Beer, I realized that my thirst wasn’t getting quenched with the soda but the water really did quench it. I have read various studies saying there is no proof of side effects of aspartame but I can honestly say, I was thirsty all the time I drank the soda. Now, I only drink water with a once a month (maybe) diet soda. I do notice I am not as thirsty. We all make choices. I dug my heels in until I was ready to change. Even with my husband’s harping on me, I really liked the soda. I knew when I was ready to switch I would. Encourage her by having a pitcher of water with or without lemon on the table when she visits and offer her a glass. If she is thirsty she might try it and actually like it. Just remember baby steps, Rome wasn’t built in a day.