Improve Your Diet If You Have High Uric Acid

There are two clear goals in treating hyperuricemia: to increase urinary uric acid excretion and to customize to 100% the diet of the person so that it is not rich in purines.

Problems with high uric acid are directly related to a poor diet  because the purines that produce it are mostly found in what we eat. So, in this article, we are going to suggest some foods that will help you improve this situation.

It is true that inside our organism, levels of this acid also appear without external help. However, under normal conditions,  80% of uric acid levels can be controlled  by following certain diets.

What does it mean to have high uric acid levels?

Hyperuricemia is when you have a high level of uric acid in the blood. The most feared symptom of this disease is gout,  which occurs when uric acid is deposited on the joints. Gout causes extremely strong pain that you should try to avoid if possible.

With a good diet, supervised by a nutritionist,  one manages to decrease the levels of uric acid in the blood and to increase the control of the situation to avoid seeing gout appear.

What is considered to be an elevated level of uric acid?

According to health experts, the correct uric acid levels are those between 2.4 and 5.7 mg / dl in women and between 3.4 and  7.0 mg / dl in men. Therefore, any value exceeding these limits is considered an indicator of hyperuricemia and should be treated in time before the disease worsens.

What foods should I eat if I have high uric acid levels?

In our diet,  we must reduce foods rich in purines  because, as they break down in the body, they lead to hyperuricemia. Luckily, there are some foods that can help lower uric acid levels if you eat them on a regular basis:

Low Purine Foods We Can Eat

There are foods with low levels of purines in their composition, which we can easily include in our diet. Here they are :

• Dairy products
• Vegetables, with the exception of some mentioned below
• Roots and Tubers
• Fruits rich in vitamin C
• Dried fruits without salt

We need to pay attention to all foods because they all contain purines but to varying degrees. With good planning, we can have good results from our blood tests.

Foods with an average purine content

Then we have foods with average purine concentrations. Their consumption can be a little more flexible compared to the previous list. These foods are:

• White meats
• Mushrooms and asparagus
• Legumes, except broad beans and lentils
• Cauliflower
• Spinach

We can include this type of food in our diet,  but their consumption should not be excessive.

What foods should we avoid?

Animal fats and foods high in purines are the ones that should be limited. Among the latter we can highlight viscera, concentrated broths, sauces and soups made with pieces of meat. In addition to this, we can note the fish, and mainly the blue fish like sardines, anchovies, red mullet, shrimp or mackerel.

The consumption of alcohol and processed products are not recommended  to be successful in lowering your uric acid levels or preventing them from rising. It is therefore better to eliminate them or limit their consumption.

Things to consider with a high uric acid level

• Fruit consumption

In the case of fruits,  we have to control them well  because, on the one hand, they are very good (they have a low amount of purines) but, on the other hand, they have high concentrations of fructose, which generate purines. in the body.

• Types of cooking

The type of cooking in hyperuricemia can also be important. If you boil food, you can reduce the purine content of the food. A boiled or baked dish is a better option  than a dish fried or cooked with large amounts of oil, for example.

• Drinks

The ultimate drink that we should drink is water. We should increase our water intake if it is not enough  and try to drink at least two liters per day, as recommended. If we eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, in addition to broths, soups or infusions, we also include water in our body.

While it is true that these tips can help lower your hyperuricemia levels,  it is important that you see your doctor,  who can examine you and prescribe the most suitable treatment for your condition.