A sudden, stabbing pain in the back, waves of nausea and bouts of vomiting so severe some patients collapse.
For 600,000 Americans every year, that is the reality of developing kidney stones – pebble-like clumps of minerals that form in the urinary system – and doctors say the problem is getting worse.
Once considered a condition that struck in middle age, kidney stones are now increasingly being seen among people in their 20s and 30s.
‘People used to present for the first time in middle age,’ said Dr Ryan Steinberg, a urologist at the University of Iowa Health Care. ‘Now we are seeing more and more younger patients affected.’
The rise has been dramatic. Around 11 percent of men and nine percent of women now develop kidney stones, up from just four percent in the late 1970s. They account for more than 500,000 emergency visits every year.
Experts say the shift is being driven by modern diets. Particularly, ultra-processed foods high in salt, which increases calcium in the urine and promotes stone formation, coupled with a decline in fruits and vegetables that naturally help prevent crystals from clumping.
Additionally, sugary drinks – often replacing water – leave urine more concentrated, allowing minerals to harden into stones.
‘Kidney stones have been on the rise for a variety of reasons, especially in the 12 to 30 age group,’ said Dr George Ellis, a New York-based urologic surgeon. ‘Children are consuming fewer citrate-containing fruits and vegetables, which helps prevent stones. Family history [also] plays a significant role in developing stones at a younger age.’
One young TikTok creator posted about passing a kidney stone after ‘a month of hell’
Kidney stones have surged from four percent of the population in the late 1970s to roughly 12 percent by 2025
For those who develop kidney stones, the experience can be brutal.
On a Reddit forum for kidney stone sufferers, one patient wrote of an acute flare-up: ‘I couldn’t really move. I literally fell forward [off] the toilet. I was in so much pain and I couldn’t stand up. I couldn’t stop shaking from pain. I was white as a sheet. I filled one sick bag after another with vomit.’
Another commented: ‘[The] pain was affecting my ability to walk and move. By the time I got to the hospital, the pain was at its peak. Intense agony, dizziness and vomiting.’
A TikTok user named Darby Lou said it took her a ‘month of hell’ to finally pass her kidney stone.
Bill, from South Carolina, who chose to withhold his last name when speaking to the Daily Mail, was on the beach when he first felt the pain – a sharp, deep ache in his side that quickly became unbearable.
‘I thought if I could get home I might feel better, but pain only got worse,’ he said.
He tried lying down, then curling into the fetal position, but nothing helped.
‘So I did laps around the house and felt this helped a bit to ease the pain,’ he continued.
Within an hour, he was on his way to the hospital.
Bill, a South Carolina man, was on the beach when a sharp ache in his side became unbearable. Nothing helped, and within an hour, he was on his way to the hospital
The reason the pain of kidney stones is so severe lies in what is happening inside the body.
Kidneys filter waste from the blood, producing urine to carry it out. But when certain minerals from food and drink – most commonly calcium and oxalate – become too concentrated in the urine, they can begin to crystallize.
Normally, these tiny crystals are flushed out without notice. But when urine is concentrated – often due to dehydration – they can stick together and grow. Over time, they form hard, jagged stones.
Trouble begins when a stone moves into the ureter. The tube is narrow, and as the stone scrapes along its lining or blocks it entirely, pressure builds behind it in the kidney.
That is what triggers the hallmark symptom: intense, wave-like pain that radiates from the lower back to the groin, often leaving sufferers pacing, sweating and unable to find relief.
Some notice blood in their urine or feel a constant urge to urinate despite passing very little. Others experience nausea so severe that they begin vomiting.
In Bill’s case, doctors confirmed he had a stone lodged in his ureter, where it was blocking the normal flow of urine.
Because of its size and position, they decided it might pass on its own through his urine without the need for surgery.
Kidney stones vary in shape, size and makeup. Calcium kidney stones, including calcium oxalate and calcium phosphate stones, are some of the most common types
Dr George Ellis, a urologic surgeon, notes that kidney stones are rising fastest among people aged 12 to 30 due to poor diet, inadequate hydration, rising obesity and family history – but emphasizes that proper hydration and diet can reverse the trend
What followed was a three-and-a-half-week ordeal of pain and waiting as the stone slowly made its way through his system.
‘It actually came down to me passing it hours before the set surgery time,’ he said.
Diet plays a central role in whether these stones form in the first place, and Bill believes his own habits were a major factor.
He told the Daily Mail that he rarely drank water, instead consuming large amounts of tea each day, alongside snacks such as almonds and cashews – foods high in oxalate, a key component of the most common type of kidney stone.
‘I would drink 64 to 80 ounces of unsweetened tea during the day with a cup or two of hot tea at night,’ he said.
Experts say this kind of pattern is increasingly common.
‘A high-sodium diet can trigger kidney stones because it increases the amount of calcium in your urine,’ Dr Howard LeWine, a practicing internist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts and chief medical editor at Harvard Health Publishing, said. ‘So, a low-sodium diet is recommended for the stone-prone.
‘Beets, chocolate, spinach, rhubarb, tea and most nuts are rich in oxalate. People who form calcium oxalate stones should limit these foods.
‘The extra oxalate is excreted in the urine, where it can combine with urinary calcium. If you suffer from calcium oxalate stones, your doctor may advise you to avoid these foods, or to consume them in smaller amounts.’
Sugary drinks are known to compound the problem by replacing water in the urine, leaving it more concentrated.
Add in rising obesity levels and sedentary lifestyles – both of which alter urine chemistry – and the conditions are ideal for stones to develop.
The trend is now being seen across large population studies. Research has shown that people with higher body mass index are significantly more likely to develop kidney stones.
In one study of more than 84,000 post-menopausal women, those with higher BMIs had a 30 percent increased risk compared with those in the ‘normal’ range.
Physical inactivity also plays a role.
In the same study, women who exercised even at low levels had a 16 percent lower risk of developing stones, while those who were most active cut their risk by nearly a third.
NIH-funded research has shown that weight changes the composition of urine, increasing levels of substances such as oxalate, sodium and uric acid that contribute to stone formation.
Despite the severity of the pain they cause, kidney stones are often preventable.
The most effective step in prevention is also the simplest: drink more water.
Keeping urine diluted helps prevent minerals from reaching the concentrations needed to form crystals.
Dietary changes can also make a significant difference. Experts recommend reducing salt intake – ideally to no more than 2,300mg a day, and lower for those prone to stones – while increasing fruit and vegetable consumption.
Foods rich in potassium and citrate, including citrus fruits, bananas, tomatoes and root vegetables, can help prevent crystals from forming or sticking together.
Regular physical activity further reduces risk by improving overall metabolic health.
The rise in kidney stones closely mirrors broader changes in diet and lifestyle (increased consumption of ultra-processed foods and declining physical activity), but it also means the trend is, to a large extent, reversible.
When asked to describe the pain he endured in one word, Bill called it ‘excruciating.’ It’s not something he’d wish on anyone, and, luckily, he hasn’t had another kidney stone since.
‘It took about four weeks to be back to normal,’ he told the Daily Mail.
‘Since then, I have eliminated the tea altogether and now drink as much water as I can.’
Ellis recommended a straightforward approach for anyone who may be concerned. It includes keeping urine light yellow or clear with plenty of fluids, cutting back on processed foods and fast food to reduce salt, loading up on potassium and citrate-rich fruits and vegetables and don’t skip calcium – just avoid pairing dairy with high-salt meals.
