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Estimation of the oxalate content of foods and daily oxalate intakeBACKGROUND: The amount of oxalate ingested may be an important risk factor in the development of idiopathic calcium oxalate nephrolithiasis. Reliable food tables listing the oxalate content of foods are currently not available. The aim of this research was to develop an accurate and reliable method to measure the food content of oxalate. METHODS: Capillary electrophoresis (CE) and ion chromatography (IC) were compared as direct techniques for the estimation of the oxalate content of foods. Foods were thoroughly homogenized in acid, heat extracted, and clarified by centrifugation and filtration before dilution in water for analysis. Five individuals consuming self-selected diets maintained food records for three days to determine their mean daily oxalate intakes. RESULTS: Both techniques were capable of adequately measuring the oxalate in foods with a significant oxalate content. With foods of very low oxalate content (<1.8 mg/100 g), IC was more reliable than CE. The mean daily intake of oxalate by the five individuals tested was 152 +/- 83 mg, ranging from 44 to 352 mg/day. CONCLUSIONS: CE appears to be the method of choice over IC for estimating the oxalate content of foods with a medium (>10 mg/100 g) to high oxalate content due to a faster analysis time and lower running costs, whereas IC may be better suited for the analysis of foods with a low oxalate content. Accurate estimates of the oxalate content of foods should permit the role of dietary oxalate in urinary oxalate excretion and stone formation to be clarified. Other factors, apart from the amount of oxalate ingested, appear to exert a major influence over the amount of oxalate excreted in the urine.
Document ID
20040141606
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Holmes, R. P.
(Wake Forest University School of Medicine Winston-Salem, NC 27157, United States)
Kennedy, M.
Date Acquired
August 22, 2013
Publication Date
April 1, 2000
Publication Information
Publication: Kidney international
Volume: 57
Issue: 4
ISSN: 0085-2538
Subject Category
Life Sciences (General)
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
NASA Discipline Regulatory Physiology
Non-NASA Center

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