The high uric acid is a problem of many people, almost all my close co-worker has a high uric acid and the symptoms make them suffered like gout and other joint pain especially in the knee and ankle.
Maybe we already know it but what is uric acid?
A Uric acid is a heterocyclic compound of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen with the formula C 5 H 4 N 4 O 3. It forms ions and salts known as urates and acid urates such as ammonium acid urate.
Uric acid is a product of the metabolic breakdown of purine nucleotides, purine found in liver, anchovies, mackerel, dried beans, peas, and beer. High blood concentrations of uric acid can lead to gout. The chemical is associated with other medical conditions including diabetes and the formation of ammonium acid urate kidney stones.
Most uric acid dissolves in blood and travels to the kidneys. From there, it passes out in urine. Normal uric acid levels in our body should be in between 3.6mg/dL to 8.6mg/dL. If your body produces too much uric acid or doesn't remove enough of it, you can get sick. A high level of uric acid in the blood is called hyperuricemia.
What the cause of excess uric acid? Some Factors that may cause a high uric acid level in your blood include:
- Medical conditions: an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), leukemia, psoriasis, obesity
- Diuretic medications (water pills) Drinking too much alcohol Genetics (inherited tendencies) the consumption of caffeine
- Hypothyroidism Immune-suppressing drugs Niacin, or vitamin B-3 Obesity Psoriasis
- Purine-rich diet — organ meat, game meat, anchovies, herring, gravy, dried beans, dried peas, mushrooms and other foods
- Renal insufficiency — inability of the kidneys to filter waste
- Tumor lysis syndrome — a rapid release of cells into the blood caused by certain cancers or by chemotherapy for those cancers
Symptoms of uric acid may experience due to the high uric acid in the bodies. But sometimes it’s undiagnosed because other people may be asymptomatic.
Symptoms include:
- Gout develops due to an immunological reaction against the accumulation of uric acid crystals in the joints. Gout is characterized by severe pain in the joints, inflammation (swelling) of the joints, fever, and peeling of the skin around the joints.
- Kidney stones, kidney stones may not be detected until they get stuck in the ureter that can cause tremendous pain and makes someone frequent painful urination, blood urine, nausea and vomiting. Classic symptoms of kidney stones are sudden pain and intense in the abdomen, pelvis, and groin areas, which tend to come in repeatedly. Additional symptoms include urinating blood and pain during urination.
- Kidney failure. The most severe symptoms that manifest as less urination, shortness of breath, swelling in the limbs, confusion and sleepiness, fatigue, or chest pain. But Kidney failure may develop only in patients with leukemia, Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma because uric acid levels. This is usually a consequence of chemotherapy, which kills malignant cells.
- Uric Acid Crystals, symptoms of uric acid can be found throughout the body, depending upon where uric acid crystals lodge. Although this is often in the joints and especially in the feet, it can be almost anywhere, and that can lead to localized pain in that area.
A list of do’s and don't s when choosing the right diet for high uric acid levels by Dr. Sharad Kasarle, chief scientist of DSK Nutrition Research Center.
- Eat High-fiber foods; foods high in dietary fibre may help lower uric acid levels in your blood. Dietary fiber may help absorb uric acid in your bloodstream, allowing it to be eliminated from your body through your kidneys. Eat food such as Oats, Spinach, and Broccoli.
- Use cold-pressed olive oil in cooking instead of shortening, butter or vegetable oils. Oils that have been subjected to heat or processing turn rancid quickly. Rancid fats destroy vitamin E in your body - this vitamin is necessary for controlling uric acid levels. Olive oil helps you avoid the production of excess uric acid, which is associated with the consumption of rancid fats.
- Take vitamin C to help reduce the amount of uric acid in your system, regularly taking 500 milligrams of vitamin C will decrease your uric acid levels in a month or two.
- Take Celery seed extract, the seeds of the celery plant have long been used to treat gout, rheumatism and arthritis. Celery possesses sedative, antioxidant and mild diuretic action and is considered a urinary antiseptic. In rare cases, this herb is also used to treat sleeplessness, anxiety and nervous breakdown. Although the seeds of this plant are often used in herbal supplements, the roots may also be used.
- Eat Antioxidant-rich foods Fruits and vegetables such as red bell peppers, tomatoes, blueberries, broccoli and grapes are rich sources of antioxidant vitamins. Antioxidants which are vitamins that prevent free radical molecules from attacking your organ and muscle tissue cells may help lower uric acid levels.
- Eat Cherries, its contain chemical compounds that may help neutralise uric acid allowing your body to eliminate this acid as waste.
- Use Apple cider vinegar it can help alleviate high uric acid levels by changing the pH values of your blood. But it has to be raw, un-distilled, un-pasteurised apple cider vinegar.
- Drink plenty of fluids to help flush uric acid from your body drink a minimum of 3 and 1/2 liters of water daily. Water is a medium that aids the kidney to 'strain' the impurities from your body.
- Choose complex carbohydrates eat more whole grains, fruits and vegetables and fewer refined carbohydrates such as white bread, cakes and candy. Because foods rich in complex carbohydrates promote feelings of fullness, and prevent overeating and are useful in maintaining a healthy weight.
What to Avoid to prevent the increase of uric acid level?
- Avoid bakery products Avoid cakes, pastries, cookies and other sugary delights which are rich in saturated fats and Trans fats.
- Avoid Saturated fat, Trans fat, sugar and alcohol all these affect your triglycerides, a type of fat that can clog your arteries and increase your risk for heart attacks and strokes.
- Avoid High-fructose corn syrup this is a type of sweetener in soft drinks and other processed foods that can elevate your levels of triglyceride and uric acid - a chemical associated with diabetes, gout, alcoholism, kidney disease and other health problems.
- Avoid high-protein weight-loss diets which can cause you to produce too much uric acid (hyperuricemia).
- Limit meat, poultry and fish - animal proteins are high in purine and this will result in high uric acid levels in the body
- Limit or avoid alcohol interferes with the elimination of uric acid from your body. Drinking beer in particular has been linked to gout attacks. If you are prone to uric acid attacks, limit alcohol consumption to one drink three times a week.
If you are dealing with pain that is red and inflamed, especially if it is in a toe or finger, experiencing bleeding that doesn't stop after a few minutes, Rapid heartbeat or new rashes on the skin, especially in conjunction with starting new medications. Feeling chest pain or chest discomfort, as well as shortness of breath, be alarm, it may be a signed of high uric acid level.
There are over the counter drugs for initial releap of pain such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen or your doctor might give you allopurinol, also uricosuric drugs that prevent the crystals from lodging, and xanthine oxidase inhibitors, which help relieve the pain of gout.
Get to know the pain. consult a doctor immediately.
References:
No comments:
Post a Comment