Overview
About Oxalates
Oxalate sensitivity highlights higher-oxalate foods — such as spinach, almonds, beets, and dark chocolate — that can irritate some people when eaten often.
Oxalates are compounds found in many plant foods that can bind with calcium to form crystals. High oxalate intake may contribute to kidney stones in susceptible individuals and can cause other symptoms in those with oxalate sensitivity.
In the data
Where you will find oxalates
- High in oxalate, worth portioning on a kidney-stone diet
- High in oxalates, which matters if you form kidney stones or follow a low-oxalate diet
- Rated high in oxalate, a concern if you form kidney stones or are tracking a low-oxalate diet
- High in oxalates, which raises calcium-oxalate kidney-stone risk and matters on a low-oxalate diet
Examples
A few ingredients either way
Rated high
Grading
How we grade oxalates
Every ingredient in the database carries one grade for oxalates, and this page, the checker and the app all read that same grade. It describes the ingredient as it is usually eaten. Portion size and preparation move it.
Practical
Working with oxalates
- Eat calcium-rich foods alongside high-oxalate foods to bind oxalates.
- Try lower-oxalate greens like lettuce, arugula, or bok choy.
- Stay well-hydrated to help prevent oxalate crystal formation
- Pair high-oxalate foods with calcium-rich foods to bind oxalates
- Cooking and boiling can reduce oxalate content in some foods
- Spread oxalate intake throughout the day rather than one large dose
- Consider probiotics - some gut bacteria break down oxalates
Method
Test it with a diary
Most people find their own triggers by logging meals and symptoms for a few weeks and reading the result back. Three steps.
- 1Log every meal for a few weeks. Type it, say it out loud, or scan a barcode, and it lands as a list of ingredients.
- 2Rate how you feel through the day on whatever you are tracking, whether that is bloating, headaches, skin or sleep.
- 3Read the pattern back. Every ingredient you logged is scored against the days you felt worse, and the result ranks oxalates against everything else you eat.
Questions
Questions people ask
Are oranges high in oxalate?
Yes, oranges are high in oxalate, so they are worth limiting if you are prone to calcium-oxalate kidney stones or are following a low-oxalate diet. Cactus pear and peeled banana are much lower oxalate, and neither carries the strong histamine liberator grade that citrus does.
More about orangeAre potatoes high in oxalate?
Potatoes are rated high in oxalate, so they are a food to watch if you form calcium-oxalate kidney stones or follow a low-oxalate diet. Peeling reduces some of it, but they still rank higher than roots like carrot or turnip prepared without the skin.
More about potatoIs spinach high in oxalate?
Yes, it is one of the highest-oxalate foods there is. On a diet to prevent calcium-oxalate kidney stones, spinach is usually the first food doctors ask people to cut back, and pairing it with a calcium source or swapping in a low-oxalate green like lettuce or kale helps.
More about spinachDoes cooking spinach reduce its oxalate?
Boiling and draining spinach can lower its soluble oxalate meaningfully, but it does not remove it all, and sauteing or blending raw spinach into a smoothie keeps the oxalate load high. If oxalate is your issue, portion size matters more than cooking method.
More about spinachAre raspberries high in oxalates?
Yes, raspberries are one of the higher-oxalate berries. If you are managing calcium-oxalate kidney stones or following a low-oxalate plan, they are a fruit to keep to small, occasional portions rather than a daily staple.
More about raspberry
Read next
Where to go next
References
Oxalates sources
Where the oxalates grades come from: food composition databases, clinical guidelines and patient organisations.
7 sources from peer-reviewed research, regulatory bodies, and clinical guidelines.
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Tracking oxalates?
Log what you eat and how you feel, and the app finds the pattern for you. Or look an ingredient up here first.
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