Oxalates tracking is grossly inadequate and out of date
I'm in the process of enduring an ER visit/crisis then 3 "procedures," including surgery, for kidney stones. I want to avoid that awful pain and all the rest of the symptoms again, evermore. So being able to adequately, if not perfectly, track oxalates is one for the two main reasons I started using Cronometer.
But the more I learn, the more I've found that the info simply isn't included in the food databases, so it's not logged in our Diaries, and we can't track much at all. Blueberries show 0 oxalates. Not true. That's merely one example.
There are a lot of lists from "influencers" or "consultants," most contradictory. But there's also the gold-standard list from Harvard, even though it needs more frequent updating. I'm going to contact them.
I tried sending a message to Cronometer staff, but the Contact Us option is disabled -- on my laptop, at least.
Tracking oxalates is vital to anyone with a family history or personal experience of kidney stones. Isn't anyone else among Cronometer users concerned?
I found a couple of Apple-only apps and one Android one that I've downloaded to try. But I'd so much prefer to stick with Cronometer. If I can't use it for this key purpose, then it's just not worth the time it takes to enter info daily, I'm sorry to say.
Port Angeles, Washington USA
Comments
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Hi, I understand your frustration. My husband has serious kidney disease that requires us to keep his oxalates under 100 mg. His biopsy shows crystals embedded in his kidneys but he doesn't form stones. I find by checking variations I can often use a wording from the data base that includes oxalates. example "blueberries, frozen unsweetened" works. sour cherries works for cherries. I have to sometimes go to the Harvard list and calculate a variation like cooked beans from dried ones. It's a lot of work but gets us close to our goal. He also drinks milk at meals so he has plenty of calcium to bind with the oxalates so he doesn't absorb them. I wish you good luck.
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P.S., Sandy: I appreciate the tip about looking for something similar that is in the Cronometer database with oxalate amount (sweet vs sour cherries). I doubt there are many things, though.
Port Angeles, Washington USA
