An Anatomy Lab Just Named Kidney Stones the Most Painful Thing a Human Can Experience

In a new YouTube video, Justin Cottle at the Institute of Human Anatomy breaks down a condition that he has frequently heard people describe as the most painful thing they have ever experienced, with some even calling it more agonizing than childbirth: kidney stones.

“A lot of people do compare kidney stones with childbirth,” he said. “The thing you have to understand is that pain is actually very subjective. Meaning that if I was somehow able to give this exact same kidney stone to two different people, and they had the exact same experience, they’re still going to process that pain differently. And that doesn’t make one more ‘real’ than the other.”

“I can’t tell you how painful kidney stones are, because there’s a lot of different factors that go into it,” he continues. “It’s the person, but it’s also their overall health, it’s the size and shape of the kidney stone, it’s the hardness of the kidney stone… Either way, you do not want to have these things.”

Cottle goes on to explain that kidney stones are primarily caused by two things: a genetic predisposition towards this condition, and diet, especially foods that are high in oxalates. There are a number of reasons why kidney stones are so painful. They’re often sharp and jagged, they are “scratching and scraping” their way through a tube that is far too small, and if a stone is stuck in your urinary tract, it can block the flow of urine and create pressure inside the kidney.

When it comes to prevention, Cottle’s most important tip is simple: drink enough water.

“If you’re dehydrated, you’e going to have super-saturation because there’s less water content inside your urine,” he says. “But if you’re properly hydrated, you can have a more normal saturation level and make it far less likely for you to have those stones.”

Source: Read Full Article