The Associations Between Tea and Coffee Drinking and Risk of Calcium-Oxalate Renal Stones

Findings regarding the association between tea and coffee consumption and oxalate-calcium stone are sparse and uncertain. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relations of tea and coffee with the risk of calcium oxalate stone formation. A total sample of 215 newly diagnosed patients with calcium oxalate stones and 215 controls matched for sex and age were recruited. Dietary intake of participants was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire over the preceding year and participants were asked to determine how many glasses of tea and cups of coffee they usually use. The associations between tea and coffee and kidney stone were examined using multivariable logistic regression. Compared with controls, cases had greater intake of tea (2.18 +/- 0.76 vs. 1.82 +/- 0.79 glasses/d) but lower intake of coffee (1.18 +/- 0.38 vs. 1.26 +/- 0.44 cups/week). After adjustment for potential confounders, compared with those who drank <2 glasses of tea/d, individuals with tea consumption of >= 4 glasses/d had greater risk for having calcium oxalate stone (OR= 2.73; 95 % CI: 1.50, 4.99). In the crude model, compared with coffee consumption for <1 cup/week, consumption of >= 1 cup/week was associated with a 38 % decrease in the risk of calcium oxalate stone. However, adjustment for potential confounders disappeared the significance (OR=0.81; 95 % CI: 0.48, 1.35). These results suggest that while high consumption of tea is associated with increased risk of calcium oxalate kidney stone, coffee drinking is not pertinent. However, due to low consumption of coffee in this population, our results should be interpreted cautiously.