Oxalate is a common component of many foods of plant origin, including nuts, fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes, and is typically present as a salt of oxalic acid. In food, oxalic acid is typically found as either sodium or potassium oxalate, which are water soluble, or calcium oxalate, which is insoluble. The highest levels of oxalate are found in chocolate, nuts, beans (including soybeans), rhubarb, spinach, beets, and black tea. Calcium-oxalate are the most common form of stones. Higher dietary intake leads to hyperoxalurea. The term oxalate bioavailability has often been used to refer to that portion of food-derived oxalate that is absorbed from the GIT. Oxalate bioavailability is likely dependent on a number of factors, including…show more content… of Home Science, Vasant Kanya Mahavidyalaya Kamaccha, Varanasi , E Mail Id : priyankahscvkm@gmail.com
**Professor, Deptt. of Home Science, Mahila Mahavidyalaya BHU, Varanasi.
SOURCES OF OXALATE Oxalates are found in a wide variety of foods. Foods that come from animals usually have little or no oxalate.The stems or stalks of plants, such as amaranth, rhubarb, spinach and beet, contain significantly lower levels of oxalates than do the leaves. Oxalic acid concentration tends to be higher in plants than in meats, which may be considered oxalate-free when planning low oxalate diet.
High oxalate rich foods: (50-520 mg per serving)
Chocolate and coffee Raspberries Sweet potato & Yam Black…show more content… The absorption of oxalates from individual foods varies depending on their dietary conditions and source; in general the absorption is relatively limited. It has been estimated that 2–5% of administered oxalate is absorbed in humans. Only some of the minerals present in a food will be absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract due to the presence of dietary fibre, phytates and oxalates. High oxalate foods have been known to exert a negative effect on calcium and iron absorption. Calcium absorption from spinach, a high oxalate and high calcium food, was compared with calcium absorption from milk, a high calcium food, and showed that the calcium from spinach is not readily available, probably due to the high content of oxalates. The adverse effect of oxalates is greater if the oxalate:calcium ratio exceeds 9:4. The adverse effects of oxalates must be considered in terms of the oxalate:calcium ratio in a food. This ratio varies widely and can be classified into three groups: (i) plants with a oxalate to calcium ratio greater than two (e.g. spinach, rhubarb, beet leaves and roots, sorrel and cocoa); (ii) plants with a ratio of approximately one (e.g. potatoes, amaranth, gooseberries and currants); and (iii) plants with a ratio of less than one (e.g. lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, green beans (Noonan and Savage