Kidney stones are hard minerals that form in the kidney or urinary tract. They can cause blood in the urine and can be very painful. There are many things that can increase your risk of kidney stones, and I will address some of them.

Kidney stones can be caused by dehydration. If you do not take in enough fluid, especially after strenuous exercise, your risk of kidney stones are increased.

If you have high levels of calcium in your urine, a mineral often found in kidney stones, you could be prone to developing calcium oxalate or calcium phosphate kidney stones. This predisposition to having high levels of calcium in your urine may be hereditary.

High levels of uric acid, a byproduct of many things in the diet, increase the risk of kidney stones. People who have gout, which is a condition in which people cannot break down uric acid, are prone to developing uric acid kidney stones.

Diseases such as hyperparathyroidism, diabetes, and high blood pressure also result in an increased risk of developing kidney stones. With hyperparathyroidism, the parathyroid gland produces excess parathyroid hormone, which increases circulating calcium levels by taking it from bone, the intestines, and your diet. The increase in circulating calcium in the blood may result in increased levels of calcium in the urine, increasing the risk for kidney stones. Type 2 diabetics are at an increased risk to develop uric acid stones. The link between high blood pressure and kidney stones is not entirely understood, but it has been observed that there is an increased risk of kidney stones in individuals with high blood pressure.

Also, taking drugs the remove excess fluid in combination with excess consumption of antacids that contain calcium can also increase the risk of developing kidney stones.