Uric Acid – Top Health Today

What is Uric Acid?

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Uric Acid formation:

When purines are broken down in the body, a substance called uric acid is released into the bloodstream. There are purines naturally found in the body as well as those that are present in certain food items. The liver breaks down these purines and produces uric acid.

Uric acid, as well as its salts, aren’t easily soluble. Hot water comparatively dissolves uric acid better than cold water. Also, the acid and its salts aren’t soluble in alcohol. In such cases, they crystallize easily.

What does it do?

Uric acid is an almost inert by-product of the metabolic decomposition of purines. And uric acid generally doesn’t have much significance. But to some extent, it acts as an antioxidant. It also helps protect the blood vessel linings from damage. Thus, maintaining normal levels of uric acid in the body is essential.

In ideal cases, the uric acid is filtered out from the blood in the kidneys and sent out of the body.

Causes for irregularities in uric acid levels:

The reasons why uric acid levels in the blood might be high are:

A diet that has higher levels of purine
Sudden increase in the purine levels in the body
Kidney problems due to which uric acid release from the bloodstream is disrupted
Alcohol consumption
Hypothyroidism
Excess breakdown of purines due to some health conditions

Lower levels of uric acid could be due to deficiency of purines in the body or other health conditions like Wilson disease, Fanconi Syndrome etc.

Effects of increased levels of uric acid:

High levels of uric acid in the bloodstream might sometimes go unnoticed. But in many cases, they can lead to other health hazards. When a person undergoes chemotherapy or medication for treating any form of cancer, his blood might be screened for detecting the uric acid levels.

Few of the most common effects of uric acid excess levels in blood are:

The condition where the uric acid levels in the body are higher than the normal values is called hyperuricemia, in addition to this many people who suffer from this suffer from gout and kidney stone.

Gout:

Gout is the most common effect of untreated prolonged hyperuricemia. This occurs when the excess uric acids that remain in the bloodstream unfiltered by the kidney, they begin to crystallize in the joints. These sharp prickly crystals hurt the muscles around the joints like wrist, elbow, knees and more. This causes excruciating pain and swelling, reddening, itchiness and other symptoms.

Kidney stones:

If the uric acid crystallizes and gets deposited within the kidney, those are called kidney stones. Kidney stones of various sizes might accumulate within the kidney and make it a painful condition of the patient. One who has had an occurrence of kidney stone once in his life is more prone to get it again.

Besides gout and kidney stones, hyperuricemia might also lead to metabolic acidosis and several other health ailments. So keep a check on the amount of purine in your diet; if you are in doubt, get your blood uric acid levels tested immediately to target and cure hyperuricemia in the very initial stages.

Uric Acid Build Up in the Body

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It is still unclear to many people as to what high level of uric acid can do to your body. Excess uric acid in your blood is referred to as hyperuricemia and its byproduct in the body is uric acid. This is formed when nitrogen-based compounds like purine are digested during metabolism. Uric acid, which is soluble in water usually, finds its way out of the body through urine.

Obviously, an increased level of uric acid is not a good indication of your health. Purine, which is also produced in the body, is derived from various food sources. High levels of uric acid in some people can be attributed to genetics while in others; it can be as a result of consuming foods that contain a lot of purine. Patients suffering from hypothyroidism including those with obesity are likely to experience high levels of uric acid.

Dangers

Excess uric acid in the blood can cause serious health complications such as developing gout. Arthritis, which is another kind of gout, is also a common affliction to people with high uric acid in their blood. What happens is that crystallized form of uric acid begins to accumulate in and around the joints thus causing some inflammation. It usually affects the joints around the big toe and progresses to attack the ankles, knees, wrists and elbows.

Symptoms related to gout include pain in the joints, stiffening and swelling of the skin especially around the knees. If the buildup of uric acid is too much you begin to see pus oozing out of painful sores around the affected areas. Gout can be very severe sometimes disabling free movement of the joints and in some cases, it might cause permanent deformity.

Victims of high uric acid in their blood also risk contracting atherosclerosis. This is a condition that causes clogging of various arteries in your body due to plaque deposits. This inhibits the free flow of blood through them and as a result, the patient develops heart ailments and high blood pressure. This condition can affect anyone including people without the medical background that’s associated with heart disease problems.

Kidney stones that are found inside the kidneys come about due to excessive concentration of uric acid in the urine. In severe cases, this condition may lead to serious damage to the kidneys which might cease to function altogether. Kidney failure means the body cannot be able to rid off unwanted waste material. Damaged kidneys bring about a host of other complications. For one, it will mean lack of erythropoietin which is produced by the kidney and is responsible for producing red blood cells. Indeed, it leads to a life-threatening situation.

Chances of developing diabetes when you have high uric acid levels are high. Diabetes mellitus is commonly associated with increased sugar levels in the blood. If diabetes goes unchecked, it may trigger an avalanche of secondary complications in the body. Diabetes alone can interfere with normal functioning or various organs in the body. Dreadful effects of diabetes include blindness, partial visual impairment or having part of your body amputated.

High levels of uric acid in the blood can be reduced below 7.0mg/dL. Visit your doctor and ask to know your uric acid level. If it is high, the doctor would advise you on the type of diet to follow. Avoid foods that are rich in purine. Examples include eggs, mushroom, alcohol, beverages fatty fish and meat. Foods with no or less purine comprise nuts, cherries, raw vegetables, peanut butter and many others.

What are purines and how do they affect gout?

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When someone is diagnosed with gout, the first thing that they are asked to cut down is purines. Before seeing what purine is and how it affects gout, one has to understand what gout is.

Gout:

When the blood hashigher levels of uric acid, the person might develop a type of arthritis called Gout which can be really painful. The higher concentrations of uric acid can cause the production of sharp prickly crystals at the joints. This causes inflammation and aches in joints. Gout is also characterized by few other symptoms like:

Painful swelling and reddening of the big toe
Sore, stiff joints
Inflammation or pain in the ankles, knees, wrists, fingers, heels and other joints

A person might get gout in the following cases:

There is a sudden increase in uric acid production in the body
Kidneys are incapable of breaking down and removing the excess uric acid
The person suffers from obesity
There is a family history of gout
Purine breakdown is impacted due to any enzyme defects
The person has an unhealthy lifestyle or smoking and drinking issues
Lead exposure
When there is a lot of purines in the person’s diet

What are purines?

Purines are substances that can be found in all living cells. They are the main constituents in RNA and DNA. Purines being an important part of most living cells, they are found in many food items. They are manufactured internally in the body as well. In the liver purines are broken down into uric acids. Kidney breaks down and filters out the uric acids from the blood. This is normally how the process happens. When there is a sudden increase in the purines in the body, this leads to too much uric acid in the blood. Excess uric acid in the blood can lead to hyperuricemia. This further leads to kidney stones or gout. If hyperuricemia is diagnosed in the initial stages, the person is advised to avoid foods that have higher levels of purines.

Foods which have high purine content:

Foods which are rich in saturated fats
Meats
Few varieties of seafood
Sodas
Yeast
Alcohol, beer in particular

Though purines are found in almost all food items, the above is the list of those that have a higher content of purines. Those with gout should avoid these purine-rich foods.

How purines affect gout?

Purines enter the body from food. From dead cells, on their disintegration, the purines from the RNA and DNA are released. The body then breaks down the purines to release uric acid, which helps protect the linings of blood vessels from damage. Uric acid is a useful antioxidant. Normal levels of uric acid are essential for the body. The problem starts when:

When due to some reason the cell breakdown rate suddenly increases, there is excess purine released.
When due to improper functioning of kidneys, the uric acid breakdown rate goes down
When the diet has higher content of purines in it than allowed

In all these cases, the excess uric acid that accumulates in the blood can lead to the formation of monosodium urate crystals in the joints, kidneys, tendons and thus leading to gout.

So people diagnosed with gout can benefit from cutting down the purine-rich food items.

Arе Cherries Gооd For High Urіс Aсіd Lеvеlѕ

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Drinking еvеn small ԛuаntіtіеѕ оf Mоntmоrеnсу tаrt cherry juісе hаѕ been lіnkеd tо dесrеаѕеd lеvеlѕ of urіс acid іn thе blооd аlоng with a key biomarker for inflammation, knоwn аѕ C-rеасtіvе рrоtеіn, ассоrdіng to a раіr оf nеw ѕtudіеѕ.

Chеrrіеѕ hаvе been rеvеrеd fоr thеіr аntі-іnflаmmаtоrу properties fоr years. Tаrt сhеrrіеѕ, ѕресіfісаllу, were dесlаrеd in 2012 tо have thе hіghеѕt аntі-іnflаmmаtоrу соntеnt оf аnу food. Prior rеѕеаrсh hаѕ found tart cherry juісе саn сut inflammation levels іn lаb rats bу as muсh аѕ 50 реrсеnt.

Full disclosure: Thе 2012 rеѕеаrсh and thе current ѕtudіеѕ wеrе all fundеd bу thе Cherry Mаrkеtіng Inѕtіtutе, аn organization designed tо іnсrеаѕе tаrt сhеrrу consumption and рrоmоtіоn wоrldwіdе. However, аt least іn thе сurrеnt ѕtudіеѕ, thе CMI аllеgеѕ іtѕ ѕuрроrt was рurеlу fіnаnсіаl; nо mеmbеrѕ оf the organization hаd аnу knоwlеdgе оf thе ѕtudу dеѕіgn or аnаlуѕіѕ, оr rоlе in рublіѕhіng the fіndіngѕ.

Thе good nеwѕ іѕ, the ѕсіеnсе іѕ fоundеd. Tart cherry juісе contains hіgh levels of melatonin аnd аntіоxіdаntѕ, which ѕuрроrt nаturаl ѕlеер funсtіоn аnd reduced іnflаmmаtіоn, аѕ mаrkеd bу C-rеасtіvе protein, whісh іѕ рrоduсеd in thе lіvеr and whоѕе lеvеlѕ rіѕе when inflammation іѕ mоrе wіdеѕрrеаd.

In thе fіrѕt of the twо rесеnt ѕtudіеѕ, scientists frоm Northumbria Unіvеrѕіtу in thе UK gаvе 12 participants two dоѕеѕ оf Montmorency tart сhеrrу juісе concentrate. The fіrѕt dоѕе contained аbоut 1 ounce, оr 30 mіllіlіtеrѕ, оf thе juice соnсеntrаtе mixed wіth 100 mіllіlіtеrѕ оf wаtеr оr 2 оunсеѕ of juісе соnсеntrаtе mіxеd with 100 mіllіlіtеrѕ оf wаtеr. Pаrtісіраntѕ drаnk twо dоѕеѕ, оnсе іn thе morning and again before dіnnеr, fоr twо dауѕ.

Even with thе ѕmаll ѕtudу соvеrіng a ѕhоrt tіmе реrіоd, rеѕеаrсhеrѕ fоund marked differences bеtwееn the experimental аnd control grоuрѕ. Irrеѕресtіvе оf thе dоѕе, blооd and urine ѕаmрlеѕ revealed mоrе uric acid was leaving thе bоdу аnd C-rеасtіvе protein levels were lоwеr. This ѕіgnаlеd a reduced risk for gоut, a fоrm of arthritis that саn саuѕе ѕеvеrе аttасkѕ оf іntеnѕе раіn and swelling.

Urіс acid іѕ a problem fоr a lоt of реорlе, аnd саn cause ѕеrіоuѕ health іѕѕuеѕ. All оf us hаvе thіѕ соmроund in оur blood, but іn ѕmаll ԛuаntіtіеѕ, аnd wе should аlwауѕ trу tо keep those lеvеlѕ lоw. One way tо dо this іѕ bу wаtсhіng whаt wе еаt аnd соnѕumіng fruіtѕ that саn hеlр reduce urіс асіd naturally. Whо doesn’t lоvе cherries? This tіnу fruit іѕ great fоr rеduсіng urіс acid lеvеlѕ, аѕ wеll as сhоlеѕtеrоl. Wе knоw thіѕ іѕ a seasonal fruit, аnd thаt it can bе hard tо fіnd іn many соuntrіеѕ. But іf уоu hарреn tо see cherries аt уоur lосаl mаrkеt, еvеn іf thеу’rе nоt іn juice fоrm, dоn’t think twісе bеfоrе tаkіng thеm hоmе because thеу wіll bе hugеlу beneficial fоr you. You only nееd tо eat аrоund tеn cherries реr dау to start lоwеrіng уоur uric асіd lеvеl. And уоu ѕhоuld аlwауѕ еаt them as thеу аrе; іn оthеr wоrdѕ, dоn’t make pies оr jаmѕ оut оf thеm, juѕt еаt thе nаturаl fruit. Wаѕh thеm wеll bеfоrе еаtіng аnd еnjоу thе benefits.

Nоw уоu knоw whісh fruіtѕ аrе bеѕt for lоwеrіng urіс асіd. Hоwеvеr, you should pair thеm with a low-fat dіеt wіthоut rеd mеаt. Fоr example, trу adding аrtісhоkеѕ tо your dіеt, a ѕеrіоuѕlу bеnеfісіаl vеgеtаblе!

Can Gout be linked to Kidney Stones?

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Associating gout and kidney stones is a issue many experience today. In the past, many individuals felt that if you are suffering from gout at any phase of your life, then you are likely to develop stones in your kidney at some time as well.

Why does gout get linked to kidney stones?

The two are linked together based on the fact that both originate due to the presence of high concentrations of uric acid in the blood. Moat people feel that gout can give rise to stones in the kidney later in your life, but at the same time, we find doctors and health care professionals also stating the same thing.

What are the causes behind the formation of gout?

In order to find out the exact reason behind what makes gout linked to stones in your kidneys, you should at first get an idea of what it takes to form gout in your body. Here are some of the factors:

Lifestyle: People who choose to lead a sedentary lifestyle are more prone to suffer from gout. On the other hand, alcohol consumption also stands in the way of uric acid expulsion from the body in a proper manner.

Medications: There are some particular types of medicines which are likely to increase the levels of uric acid in the blood.

Being overweight: If you are overweight, you stand more chances of getting hit by gout as the body then produces more uric acid.

High blood pressure: Hypertension may lead to more production of uric acid in the body thereby leading to gout.

Hypothyroidism:People suffering from hypothyroidism find it difficult to expel uric acid waste from the body and hence get attacked by gout.

Besides the mentioned factors above: age, sex, and genetics also play a major role in the formation of gout and kidney stones.

What are the symptoms of gout and kidney stones?

The symptoms of kidney stones are:

Pain in the lower part of back
Muscle cramps
Sudden chills
Blood in your urine
Nausea
Irritation in the urethra

The symptoms of gout include the following:

The pain starts from the big toe and spreads gradually to the knees, fingers, elbows, and fingers.
Swellings in the joints
Fever
Arthritis
Tender joints

What can we do to prevent gout and stones in the kidney?

There is always a solution to every problem and the problem of gout and kidney stones is not at all an exception. In order to make sure that these problems stay away from you, try adopting these measures:

Drink plenty of fluids
Avoid alcohol, purine foods and food items that contain a lot of sodium content.
Indulge in exercises, but in a moderate form. Intense exercises on a regular basis can increase your chances of getting affected by uric acid.
You should also stay away from red meat and shellfish.
Go for a medical checkup every month.

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