Many Americans are unaware of how important it is for them to know their uric acid levels and its impact on their health. At the same time, because of their lifestyles they are likely to have abnormal levels, which is an indication of a metabolic disfunction. Traditionally elevated levels of uric acid have usually been associated with kidney stones as well as problems of gout caused by the formation of crystals commonly found in the toes, hands, and elbows.
Both of those conditions affect millions of Americans each year, can be very painful, and without treatment can cause significant complications.
Over the last twenty years medical professionals, such as the five times best-selling author and doctor, Dr Perlmutter MD, have found the production of uric acid, which is a bodily process that has evolved over millions of years, has other and far-reaching consequences for health. Originally it was formed by the metabolization of fructose in fruits and its purpose was send a powerful signal, warning the body literally that winter is coming during which a scarcity of food could very well mean death by starvation.
That warning system remains with us today and the metabolization of fructose continues like clockwork to alert the body to the danger of potential starvation. In response, it automatically signals an urgent need for the body to start making and storing fat to build a reserve of energy. It also lowers the metabolism to ensure minimum energy use, raises blood pressure so that essential organs get their supply of blood, and increases blood sugar levels so that the brain gets its needed glucose.
The crucial difference between now and then is that we no longer have food scarcity, but the alert mechanism faithfully functions in an environment in which there is in fact an overabundance of food and where, at least in North America, people consume much more than they need every day.
Much of the food and sodas contain an artificial sweetener which has been processed from genetically modified (GMO) corn called high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). This is a cheaper form of sugar containing roughly equal amounts of glucose and fructose. Fructose is a natural sugar found in many fruits, vegetables, and honey. The difference between and HFCS is that these come with fiber which slows down the process of metabolization. HFCS on the other hand has no fiber and provides little to no nutritional value other than facilitating conditions of overweight and obesity, often aggravated by an inactive lifestyle.
While it remains a highly controversial subject, there are health experts who consider fructose to be insidious to our health because the common habit of overeating processed foods automatically involves an overconsumption of fructose. And bear in mind that over 60% of packaged foods in grocery stores contain sweeteners. They argue that fructose is a leading cause of obesity and is the greatest cause of elevated uric acid levels which provokes a metabolic disturbance. This disturbance impacts our blood pressure and blood sugar precipitating life-threatening diseases like Alzheimer’s, Type-2 diabetes, coronary artery disease, and some cancers. Just the kind of ailments that are bringing health systems to their knees.
Your level can be revealed in a blood test as part of your annual health check. But this is only a snapshot. You can monitor it yourself at home more regularly by using one of these uric acid kits and adjust your lifestyle accordingly.
According to Dr Perlmutter many health professionals recommend a normal reading of below 7. He disagrees on the basis that the recommendation is related more to gout. He recommends you aim for an optimal reading of below 5.5.
If your uric acid level is elevated or you want to ensure it remains optimal, you can adopt a lifestyle change and alter your diet to lower the level and Dr Perlmutter’s new book Drop Acid will show you how and inform you about the links he has found between sugar, uric acid, and obesity.