Cranberry juice has been used to promote urinary tract health for generations, but new research suggests that it may encourage the formation of the most common type of kidney stones.
Researchers from the University of Texas Southwest Medical Center decided to study the effects of cranberry juice on people susceptible to calcium oxalate kidney stones, after many reported that they consumed it in an effort to prevent a recurrence of the uncomfortable condition.
The symptoms of kidney stones include pain in the lower back and abdomen, painful urination and the urge to urinate frequently. They are formed when minerals that are dissolved in urine, such as calcium and oxalate, crystallize. While small stones may travel to the bladder and be passed with the urine flow, larger formations can become lodged in the tube between the kidneys and the bladder, where they cause an obstruction.