Barley Water for Kidney Stones: Benefits & Natural Relief

Kidney stones have become one of the biggest health concerns these days. According to scientists as well as doctors, the number of people suffering from kidney stones has increased almost 10 folds during the last few years. While most of us believe that surgery is the only way to get rid of this painful problem, there are a few simple and easy natural remedies that can be used to treat this problem too. Barley water is one of them.

What Are Kidney Stones?

Kidney stones are basically crystallized mineral deposits, which form inside our kidneys or sometimes urethras. In most of the cases, these crystals are made of calcium precipitations (mainly calcium oxalate and mixed with calcium phosphate at times). However, they can also contain uric acid or a certain amino acid called ‘cystine’ if you are suffering from gout or genetic problems. These hard masses lodged in kidney tissues can be of various sizes – from being the size of a small sand grain to being as big as a golf ball! They usually come with several mild to severe symptoms like acute pain (lower abs, flank and groin area), inflammation, digestive issues, chills, fever, infection, blood in urine, and sometimes even medical emergency.

Causes Of Kidney Stone Formation:

As the stones grow larger, they create more and more obstruction to the urethra and damage the kidney tissues to a large extent. But before you take any preventive measure, it is important to know the actual causes behind kidney stones:

• Heredity plays a key role in kidney stone formation.
• If you have a history of kidney or urinary tract infections, you should consider yourself at risk.
• Over consumption of processed foods can lead to kidney stones.
• Consumption of red meat, caffeine, sugar, dairy products, and refined flour too can increase the risk of kidney stones.
• Prolonged use of antacids can also result into kidney stones.

Why To Drink Barley Water For Kidney Stones?

Barley water not only averts the formation of kidney stones, but also helps in dissolving the existing ones. Here is how:

1. Regular consumption of barley water is considered as one of the most effective natural remedies for kidney stones as it can create required bladder pressure and make the kidney stone elimination process easier.
2. Barley water helps in maintaining the pH balance in our body by making it alkaline. It eventually restricts the production of kidney stones.
3. It plays a key role in nourishing our kidneys and keeping them healthy, which is essential for preventing different urinary tract issues including the recurrence of kidney stones.
4. Drinking barley water helps in cleansing the kidneys by flushing all sorts of toxic materials out of the body through urine.
5. Barley is rich in dietary fiber, which is required for reducing the excretion of calcium in our urine.
6. Barley water provides enough vitamin B6 to our body, which breaks down the calcium oxalate masses formed inside our kidneys.
7. Barley contains lots of magnesium, which speeds up the dissolution of calcium oxalate crystals.
8. Last but not the least, barley is one of the cheapest cereals and you can avail it at anytime and anywhere.

How To Prepare Barley Water?

Here is the step-by-step procedure of barley water recipe for kidney stones:

• Pour 1 liter of fresh drinking water into a pot. Take 1 tablespoon of barley seeds and add it to the water. Place the pot in the oven.
• Now, turn on the heat and let the mixture boil for at least 30 minutes at low flame. Take the pot out once the concoction reduces to half of its original quantity.
• Cool it down and keep drinking all through the day.
• Barley water usually tasteless. So, if you wish, you can add fresh lemon juice or a tablespoon of honey to make it more palatable.

A Word Of Caution:

Well, there is no major side effect of consuming barley water for kidney stones. However, consuming too much of this natural drink can cause an upset stomach and cause loose motions. Furthermore, if you have gluten intolerance, make sure that you stay away from barley water.

So, start drinking barley water from today to prevent the formation of kidney stones.

Stay healthy and pain free!

Have you ever suffered from kidney stones? What treatment did you use? Share with us.