Which Type of Water Is Recommended for Patients with Stone Disease (Hard or Soft Water, Tap or Bottled Water): Evidence from a Systematic Review over the Last 3 Decades.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Systematic review of heterogeneous literature (designs of included studies not specified as RCTs).
PubMed 32016596 · doi:10.1007/s11934-020-0968-3
What was done
The authors conducted a systematic review examining literature from the last three decades on the relevance of different water types (hard vs. soft, tap vs. bottled mineral water) and mineral content (calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate) in kidney stone disease.
What was found
The abstract provides no numerical data, effect estimates, or study counts. It qualitatively reports that hard water and bottled mineral water might be helpful for calcium stone formers; despite calcium-induced hypercalciuria, the overall effect appears to be a reduction in calcium stone formation. High magnesium and bicarbonate content were also reported as recommended.
Why it matters
This review synthesizes conflicting dietary advice and suggests that mineral-rich water types do not increase stone risk and may instead aid in stone prevention.
Limits
The abstract provides no quantitative findings, sample size, or number of reviewed studies. Specific mineral thresholds, study designs, and formal quality/bias assessments are not reported in the abstract.
Cited by
- context Drinking hard water containing calcium and magnesium is associated with lower incidence of kidney stone formation compared to consuming softened water.