Hi Angela, Sorry to hear about these symptoms! Recent studies have shown that kidney stones may be on the rise in kids due to lifestyle (sedentary) obesity or diet.

There's not much that you as a parent can specifically do to prevent kidney stones for your son. You can encourage him to follow an overall healthy lifestyle, which can help reduce the risk.

Balanced diet
Drink lots of non-caffeinated liquids. (The National Kidney Foundation says high fluid intake may decrease the risk of kidney stones.)
Get exercise.


Here's an NIH newsletter and article that might be of some help to you:
http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fu llstory_69459.html

We are doing all of that. He drinks over a gallon of water or lemonade a day. He plays golf. But alot of physical activity increases his lower back pain over the kidney. He is 5'7 and 135lbs so obesity is not an issue. We are doing the low sodium as much as possible with a kid.

Sorry to hear about your son. Does your Dr. know what type of stones he is producing? Apparently there are different types. Here are a few sites. There are lots of other sites to check out. Hope your son is feeling better. Good luck.

http://www.bchealthguide.org/kbase/topic/m ajor/hw204795/course.htm
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/press_relea ses/2006/12_18_06.html

My daughter has just passed one and it was scary. I think this may have happened a few weeks ago, too, so I'm a little concerned. Here's what I've found in Jonny Bowden's book, "The Most Effective Natural Cures": magnesium oxide - 92.3% of people who took it after having had kidney stones stopped having them! My daughter is almost 9, so I'm going to give her a magnesium tablet in a drinkable form every other evening. I shall also put her on a 1,000 IU dose of Vit D3 as soon as possible. If these stones are mostly calcium, then my educated guess would be that this phenomenon is caused by faulty calcium metabolism. In order for calcium to be used properly, you need enough Vit D in your system (preferably from the sun, but supplements of Vit D3 can help, too) and magnesium. Your Vit D3 levels can be measured easily, but not your magnesium levels. Send your kid outside into the sun without sunscreen (but don't let him burn, either) as often as possible to build up his vitamin D levels.

All the best,

amanda wood