10 Major Causes Of High Uric Acid Levels

High uric acid level in the blood is a common problem but there amazing remedies, treatments and foods that helps lower it naturally. The common symptom of high uric acid is gout which is very painful but we can easily prevent it if we bring down the uric acid levels to normal range.

Our body constantly works hard to get rid of the waste material and one of the waste material that is disposed of regularly is uric acid.

Uric acid is the end product of purine breakdown from the foods we eat. Usually majority of the uric acid is filtered out by the kidneys and is passed out in the urine.

Some of the uric acid also passes out through the stools. But sometimes our body does not eliminate uric acid efficiently leading to high uric acid levels in the blood.

# Kidney Problems

People with kidney problems generally have high levels of uric acid. When we have kidney problems, we don’t eliminate uric acid efficiently leading to high uric acid levels. If you are suffering from any kidney disease, it is best to check your uric acid levels.

# Intake Of High Purine Foods

Intake of high purine foods is also one of the major reasons for high uric acid levels. Some of the commonly consumed high purine rich foods are organ meats, duck, chicken, fish, lamb, turkey, beef (all meat varieties), sunflower seeds, raisins and pulses.

# High Alcohol Consumption

High alcohol consumption usually causes lots of ill effects in the body and one of the side effects is elevated uric acid levels. Consuming high levels of alcohol decreases the uric acid removal in the kidneys.

# High Fructose Foods

Consuming lot of sugary drinks and processed foods can also lead to high uric acid levels. Almost all the processed foods have high amount of fructose content in them. Since our kidneys have to eliminate the fructose, it reduces the uric acid removal in the kidneys.

# Medications

Certain drugs can increase the uric acid levels. Diuretics can reduce the amount of uric acid removal in the kidneys. Certain drugs can also affect the kidney function which in turn affects the uric acid removal.

# High Levels Of Lead In The Body

If there is high levels of lead in the body, it can cause kidney dysfunction which in turn will affect uric acid removal. Lead poisoning occurs when we either ingest or breathe in lead dust. Lead poisoning is more common than we think, some of the common culprits are kajal, paints, certain toys, etc.

# Diseases

Most kidney diseases which affects it’s function will affect the uric acid removal process too. Also certain treatments for certain diseases can increase uric acid production. For example, chemotherapy increases purine break down resulting in more uric acid production.

# Obesity

People who are overweight tend to have high amounts of uric acid in their bodies. Also people who go through starvation diets to lose weight will experience high uric acid levels as the body starts breaking muscle tissue and will eventually lead to high uric acid in the blood.

# Genetics

Some people might be genetically predisposed to having higher uric levels. The genes UCP2 and SLC2A9 plays a major role in the blood urate levels and can cause increase in uric acid levels but this might vary from person to person depending on the gender and body mass index.

# Ageing

Ageing also plays a huge role in increasing blood uric acid levels. Ageing, diet and life style are the major causes of high uric acid levels. Also some of the medicines used for treating certain diseases of the old age also contribute to high uric acid levels.