Many gout victims want to discover how to reduce uric acid crystals. Here, you'll discover how to do this using 5 herbal remedies. And you'll also discover how diet plays a vital role in reducing uric acid crystals and preventing gout attacks.
In order to reduce uric acid crystals you need to reduce their acid levels in your blood. And in order to reduce uric acid in your bloodstream, you first need to understand how it is formed...
Formation of Uric Acid Leading to Gout Attacks
When chemical compounds called "purines" in your body and food breaks down as part of the process that results in producing your protein and energy requirements, uric acid is formed as a byproduct.
Normally your kidneys take excess acid out of your blood, process it, and then flush it out of your body through the urine. The normal levels of acid left are antioxidants that are beneficial to your blood vessels.
High uric acid levels usually occur when there is too much acid being produced by purines, or, there are normal levels of acid being produced, but your kidneys are unable to process them efficiently.
Therefore excess acid circulates in your blood. This excess can then settle in your joints and surrounding tissue in the form of uric acid crystals. These crystals are needle-shaped and so cause the recognisable symptoms of gout; redness, inflammation, swelling and great pain. This can happen in any joint, but the big toe is by far the most common.
Ramifications of Recurring Gout
Any gout attack is an excruciating experience; but multiple attacks over time can produce really worrying outcomes like permanent joint damage, kidney stones and even more serious kidney problems. Which is why it is vital for you to find a way of reducing uric acid crystals, and preventing further gout attacks.
Drugs to Reduce Acid Levels
Now, you can do this through prescription drugs that help lower your acid levels, such as allopurinol. And these do work very well over the long term. But they can have bad side effects like nausea, diarrhea and sometimes skin complaints and allergies.
Also, they cannot deal with the root cause of your high acid levels, they can only reduce the levels. So that they need to be taken over very long periods. If you come off them, there is nothing to stop your levels rising again.
Natural Ways to Reduce Uric Acid
In order to help reduce acid levels and then continue to control them at safe levels, many gout sufferers are utilising the acid-reducing properties of natural treatment options. In addition, these natural approaches can also reduce inflammation and relieve the pain of gout attacks.
5 of the most popular natural remedies to reduce uric acid crystals are herbal:-
1 - Alfalfa can help to neutralize high acid levels, as well as having high levels of minerals and nutrients.
2 - Burdoch is another herbal remedy that can neutralize high acid levels.
3 - Bachu made into a tea has been shown to dissolve uric acid crystals and help flush them out of your body.
4 - Celery and celery seeds have been shown to lower acid levels.
5 - Devils claw has been known to reduce acid levels too.
Of course this only scratches the surface of what is available. And you need also to address other issues like diet, weight, family history, medications, medical conditions, even lifestyle issues.
Importance of Diet in Reducing Uric Acid
Diet itself is so important. The typical Western diet contains lots of animal protein which can be high or very high in purines. So eating these high-purine foods only increases the risk of uric acid crystals forming and causing gout. As a gout sufferer you should avoid high-purine foods.
