Let’s be honest, most of us love a cheeky little sweet treat every now and then.
Eating something sweet every now and again isn’t that bad for you but new research has just rained on our parade. Consuming foods with added sugars regularly could increase your risk of developing kidney stones, according to the results of the study.
It found that people in the US who have a high consumption of foods with added sugars were 40% more likely to develop kidney stones.
The research also highlighted that people living below the poverty line were more likely to develop kidney stones when consuming more added sugars than people living slightly above the poverty line.
However, researchers still aren’t sure how there is a link between added sugars and kidney stones.
“Ours is the first study to report an association between added sugar consumption and kidney stones,” lead author Dr. Shan Yin, a researcher at the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, China, said
Dr. Yin says the research suggests that reducing your sugar intake could help you prevent the development of kidney stones.
The British Association of Urological Surgeons states that one in 11 people will get kidney stones during their lifetime. Kidney stones can grow in one or both kidneys and typically affect people aged 30 to 60, according to the NHS.
If you have small kidney stones, you probably won’t notice them. However, the NHS says anyone with larger kidney stones can experience these symptoms:
- pain in the side of your tummy (abdomen)
- serious pain that comes and goes
- vomiting or feeling sick