A recent study found that a diet rich in acidic foods increases uric acid levels in the body, leading to conditions such as gout (a form of arthritis), joint pain, and uric acid crystallization.
Peter was suddenly jolted from his sleep by a sharp and throbbing pain in his left foot. He looked down to see that his big toe was extremely swollen and red, so tender and sore that even the lightest friction from the bed sheet was too much to bear. It was becoming a common occurrence in his life, and a highly inconvenient one at that.
Wendy could barely function at work. She struggled to even finish her morning coffee for fear of having to go to the bathroom, for every time she did, she would nearly pass out from the immense pain shooting through her belly and pubic area. This was her second case of kidney stones in the same year.
If you or somebody you know is suffering from kidney issues, joint pain, or gout, then you probably know how unfortunate it is to experience a lower quality of life at the hands of a debilitating ailment.
According to Global RPH, approximately 2 million people suffer from gout, 75-90% of whom are men. Gout has been known to lead to painful conditions such as kidney stones due to the build up of uric acid in the blood or urine.
Although there are multiple factors that can lead to high levels of uric acid in the body, a recent study suggests that uric acid buildup can be linked to one substantial factor — an acidic diet. The study explores the theory that, by introducing a more alkaline diet to the body, one can effectively lower uric acid levels, thereby reducing instances of gout and other kidney and joint related issues.
What the Scientific Evidence States
The study enrolled a group of healthy female students who had no prior medical problems at their regular physical examinations provided by the university in a back-to-back, five-day study that compared urine samples from a high-protein and low-vegetable/fruit diet (acidic) to a low-protein, high-vegetable/fruit diet (alkaline).
Researchers measured the total volume of urine, the pH, and levels of organic acids, creatinine, uric acid, and titratable acid, as well as all cations (Na+,K+,Ca2+,Mg2+,NH4+) and anions (Cl−,SO42−,PO4−) necessary for the estimation of acid–base balance.
The study noted a linear relationship between higher acidic serum levels and the metabolic degradation of materials being consumed (diet). Uric acid in the serum was higher in the acidic group than in the alkaline group, which suggests that uric acid may be reabsorbed more actively in acidic urine than in alkaline urine, where it is more actively excreted.
Conclusion and What to Eat for Alkalinity
According to the study, high protein foods (rich in amino acids) were prone to acidic by-products. This included meat, eggs, and some dairy products such as butter. Furthermore, foods such as corn, alcohol, sugar, salad oils, and mayo were also found to produce acidic byproducts in the body.
On the flip side, here are the foods that produced alkaline conditions in the body: green leafy vegetables, pumpkin, miso, basil, cucumber, cabbage, kiwi, pineapple, mushrooms, yams, vinegar, walnuts, bell peppers, and more. (For more info, see appendix.)
Researchers also noted that since the study was conducted exclusively on female students, experiments of the same kind need to be performed on male students, on older populations, and also on people with hyperuricemia at baseline for generalization of dietary intervention.
Bottom line: Dietary intervention is one of the best choices in preventing conditions caused by uric acid build-up such as gout and joint pain, and an alkaline rich diet is an effective way to go about preventing these types of disorders.
The Ultimate Alkalizing Cocktails
Using the acidic/alkaline chart from Alkalife, we’ve put together two fantastic alkalizing cocktails to help eliminate acidic environments in the body. Enjoy!
Ginger-Fruit Iced Tea
Ingredients:
- Organic ginger tea
- Purified water
- 1-2 tablespoons of fresh lemon and/or lime juice
- 1/4 cup of organic grapefruit juice
Directions:
- Steep the ginger tea in purified, alkaline water for five minutes or until desired colour. Let cool.
- Stir in lemon and/or lime juice as well as the grapefruit juice. Add ice and enjoy! (Can be enjoyed hot as well during the winter months.)
The Very-Berry-Banana Smoothie
Ingredients (serves 1):
- 2 ripe medium-large bananas
- 2 cups of frozen mixed berries (strawberry, blackberry, blueberry, and/or raspberry)
- 1-2 cups of kale (spine removed; your choice of variety)
- 2-3 tablespoons of raw pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 cup – 1 cup of purified water
Directions:
- Throw all ingredients into a medium-high powered blender until smooth consistency
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Is this site solely dedicated to trashing protein and meat products? So we should all be vegetarians because meat is bad? There seems to be a pattern here of denigrating and disparaging certain lifestyles and behaviors. I still like to come here because there is some decent articles and information, but more and more I am finding that this site is pushing certain agendas. Is that what evolving is? Creating an “other” and pointing the “shame on you” finger at it? Is that what your so called “awakening” is about on this site? Because more and more I don’t see a lot of growth or “evolution”. I see a lot un-objective reporting and preaching. Seems like an “old trick” to me. Who is exactly behind this website? I would like to know for my own research. I see some names but I would like to know where your funding comes from and who all the players are on the old CE. Just some observations from a casual reader. Keep on I guess, I will keep reading AND monitoring.
Actually yes we should all be at least vegetarians if not all the way to vegan. We were not created to be carnivores – compare the digestive systems of different herbivores versus ours and you should see the similarities. A plant-based diet is what we were designed to eat.
It’s a myth that humans are herbivore because our body resembles as that of the plant eaters.
We are in fact omnivores.. capable of consuming both animal protein and vegetation.
However, consuming animal protein is a choice.
The fact that we possess canine teeth itself shows that our ancestors evolved by consuming animal protein.
https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/omni.htm
Pretty sure that if we look at our closest living relatives, Chimps, we see that they are omnivorous. Granted it is mostly insect protein, but last i checked Insects are animals too. I can agree that we should reduce the amount of meat that we eat, and preferably only eat meat from an animal that we took part in growing and/or harvesting (in cases of thinning wild animal populations.)
They are just repeating the facts of uric acid, it is created when the body breaks down certain proteins. Dried beans is included in that, so it’s not all just against meat. This is information I’ve gotten from my Dr., not just this site. Tart cherry capsules help your body process the uric acid, so no, you don’t have to give up meats. Try not to take things in such a literal context. Additional reading on the facts will probably help you with this as it has me.
Also, cannabis can greatly reduce the occurrence of Gout attacks. Also watch out of peanut butter, asparagus, and anything with organ meat in it. Drink a lot of water.
good story
we are designed to eat meat if we weren’t we wouldn’t have the teeth and digestive systems we have. it’s not the meat that is causing the problem but rather the chemicals and poisons going into the meat before it’s slaughtered. if you eat grass fed, free range animals you won’t have as severe of a problem.
Nature has not designed us to eat meat!! We do not have claws or the sharp incisors which all the predators have.All predators have a shorter small intestine ,whereas we have substantially longer one.In the wild a mother cheetah will pass over a live baby antelope to its cubs to play ,pursue and learn to kill.Do humans take their kids to slaughter houses or fruit laden tress ,lush farms…?Eating meat transfers a lot of uric acid from the body of the animal to humans.So limit meat intake as much as possible, save earth from green house gases and take care of your health!!
You are totally wrong there. WE do NOT have a gut designed for total rumination. WE are designed for meat and veggies and WE were given a brain to hunt with. I am sick of the bull that has the greenies in raptures about the corrupt science of AGW and the stupidity of its fawning followers. Vitamin B12 is essential for logical thinking and thats why veggies are so stupid because they dont get enough of it.
People who are vegan should go around their business as usual but dont proselytize. The paleo diet is one diet that is not a fad and indicates that we need meat and the only healthy vegetarians are the ones who are rich or well off in western countries.
A good water filter is probably the best investment. Eat your meat and saturated fats but get all your veggies with it. There is so much more on this subject but would take too long.
Well said.
We are the only animals that eat meat, but lack the T-enzyme, which is required to break down cholesterol. make your own choice.
I do not want to argue pros and cons of one or the other diet – I am not a vegetarian but I enjoy immensely eating veggies. But I would like you to answer me this, Pan: If we are not designed to eat meat, please tell me what are the poor people who live in the areas covered in the snow most of the year suppose to eat in the winter months? And most importantly, how did humans survive the ice age and evolve into today’s homo sapiens, if we are designed to eat only plants? Just curious to know your view on this little problem….
Moronic carnists parroting “facts” to fit their preferences everywhere I look. Asserting their beliefs – which are 180 degrees from reality – as truth, when in fact the truth is objective, and easily verifiable.
My husband regularly suffers from gout, and he’s had cancer and kidney stones – and he consumes a high-acidic diet.
Again another useless study because they don’t use clean pure organic and unpasteurized dairy and meat
I don’t argue eating meats or veggies. It’s like trying to discuss a religion.
I eat a balance of meat and veggies, a little more veggies though because I like them and too much meat for me doesn’t digest as well.
Eat what makes you feel better. Experiment and find what your body tells you makes you feel your best.
Relax- food, meat or veggies, don’t digest well on a tense stomach.
I
agree there willymea.
Looking at the size of the ocean,I’d wager the creator designed us with seafood in mind nutritionally.
Seafood allergy’s are only suffered by the vaccinated
Evidence? Sources?
You mean to say linked, not likened. Likely the result of autoincorrect being applied to the typo likned
For real gout sufferers: if you are taking colchicine, don’t eat or drink grapefruit products. There is a contraindication, toxicity levels will result.
These tips are amazing. i will share them on my blog here: http://filmhastasi.blog.com/
joint uric acid treat by homeopatrhy
AC BENZ
AC NIT
ARG NIT
BRYONIA
COLCHICUM
KALI BICH
LYCOPODIUM
NAT PHOS
PLANTAGO
PSORINUM
SEPIA
I thought we’d evolved into omnivores so we could survive the ice ages
Just because we can eat meat doesn’t mean we should
It’s only a problem at the moment because there’s 8 billion of us and the planet won’t cope
You can also get gout if you are on a thiazide diuretic. Talk to your pharmacist if you are on a diuretic to see if it is a thiazide diurectic. If so, talk to your doctor about switching to a different kind.
here are the foods that produced alkaline conditions: vinegar – how? Vinegar is PH 2.2 approx, how can this produce alkaline conditions when it is quite clearly by definition an acid? and can you see how this massive mistake highlights the integrity of your entire article… no?
Vinegar is acidic, but it produces an alkaline by-product in our bodies.
Chemistry 101: acidic food turns into alkaline in our body. Alkaline food (sugar, milk) turn into acidic. That simple.
Hi Ben, I’ve also recently been drinking apple cider vinegar diluted with water or when I can locate it through a mixture of different fruits & some root vegetables. If I have a flare up, I take about 250ml of the mixed drink & within an hour the gout has gone. However, I do believe that it is trial & error as what works for one does not work for all. But, when you’ve got gout you’ll try anything & everything. Good luck everyone, hope you find something that works for you!
Good to read … Very helpful…
This is an unbelievably misleading article written by someone who has very little knowledge of gout. I’ve had gout for about 8 years officially, although I had had flare ups in my early 20’s before it was diagnosed. My earliest flare ups occurred when I was a very strict vegetarian, and when my gout was finally diagnosed I discovered years later that spinach and many green leafy vegetables had been the cause in my strict vegetarian days- Many green leafy veg’s are very high in purines which can turn into uric acid. Of course all the the other stuff (organ meats, shellfish, etc) are bad also- but you can NEVER tell someone with gout- “just eat green leafy vegetables” it is never that easy, and will take strict analysis of your diet, that will vary person to person.
I agree. I have other health conditions and trying to find 3 web sites that agree on what you can and what you can’t eat for gout alone is really difficult. Most say if you have gout you can eat cheese…HA! not me, it causes me gout problems!
I take turmeric milk (half teaspoon turmeric Half ts ginger 1 teaspoon honey half teaspoon ground black pepper fill cup with boiled water, as in a cup of tea) every day, I also take (in the late afternoon) one teaspoon bicarbonate of soda in quarter pint of water , never had gout for the 2 years since stopping my gout tablets, black currant juice used to set mine off and I can drink that now no problem, hope this may help
Are there any natural remedies for getting rid or uric acid crystals.
Cannabis can reduce or even eliminate gout for good. Just use it every night before bed and within 2 months you won’t have any more gout. Trust me, it works.
Hi Chris, This article is totally misleading for true gout sufferers, you can not get rid of gout, for the majority once you have one gout attack thats it you have gout for the rest of your life and there is as yet no cure, the best diet to have is one low in purines as it purines that cause uric acid to build up in the body, it has nothing to do with protein although too much as with anytihng is not good, being vegetarian also is not an escape from gout because foods like legumes pulses, mushrooms, spinach and leafy greens are high in purines, as is marmite/vegemite also any alcohol especially ones made with brewers yeast, I have found that beef and pork to be high in purines and seafood and shellfish too this also includes organ meats like heart kidneys and liver of all animals such as pate. Cabbage and cauliflower peas and sweetcorn are all moderately high too, Chicken seems to be ok in moderation but it may be a definite trigger in some. In accordance with the diet above i also eat 10 cherries a day every day whether they be fresh or frozen and drink cherry based products daily too as well as 2 times day i take a teaspoon of lemon juice in a glass of water and drink that or if i havent got lemon a teaspoon of bi carb of soda. I hasten to add that gout can also be caused by stress, rapid weight loss, trauma ie surgery or even stubbing your toe and being pregnant for the women at least lol, but i have had gout for over 20 years i was diagnosed when i was 18 im now 42 and it has taken a long time to find and research this terrible disease and i would like to point out im not a doctor or anytihng but with the invention of the internet it hs been easier to find what causes gout, and how to deal with it on a daily basis, but as with all things different triggers for different people what trigger in one person will mostly be ok for another, try to keep a diary all everything you eat and drink for one month or 2 and then when you have a flare up you can look back and see the common denominator also gout is not restricted to the feet it can strike anywhere i have had attacks in my hands, knees, hips, ankles, shoulders and neck too, in the long run it is a debilitating disease with kidney problems and as gout is a form of arthritis chronic joint pain too. I hope this has been helpful to at least one person and i wish you all luck and hopefully a pain free life.
“2 million people suffer from gout, a form or arthritis, 75-90% of which are men” ………..BUT ……”the study was conducted exclusively on female students”………. What does that tell you about the logical abilities of the researchers?.
High dose niacin can bring on a gout attack.
More info regarding tart cherry capsules for gout relief: I started getting gout flare-ups a few years ago and have found that tart cherry capsules have worked very well for me in keeping gout symptoms at bay. I take one every day and if you google it you can find them really cheap on a vitamin site.
If you have a really bad attack you should probably go to the doctor but go ahead and get the tart cherry and try it. It works wonders for me. I ran out of the pills a few months ago and didn’t think much about it and I got the most painful flare-up I’ve ever had. I thought about going to the doctor but really didn’t want to mess with the prescription stuff so I had some tart cherry pills rush shipped to me and it did take 4-5 days at double my normal dose but the attack finally went away. I’ll never miss a pill again. That is until I figure out what the root cause is. It’s probably my diet and I’ll talk to the doc next time I see him but I’m not going to take the meds unless I absolutely have to, especially since the cherry pills work so well in preventing it. I hope this helps someone.
This article is totally misleading for true gout sufferers, you can not get rid of gout, for the majority once you have one gout attack thats it you have gout for the rest of your life and there is as yet no cure, the best diet to have is one low in purines as it purines that cause uric acid to build up in the body, it has nothing to do with protein although too much as with anytihng is not good, being vegetarian also is not an escape from gout because foods like legumes pulses, mushrooms, spinach and leafy greens are high in purines, as is marmite/vegemite also any alcohol especially ones made with brewers yeast, I have found that beef and pork to be high in purines and seafood and shellfish too this also includes organ meats like heart kidneys and liver of all animals such as pate. Cabbage and cauliflower peas and sweetcorn are all moderately high too, Chicken seems to be ok in moderation but it may be a definite trigger in some. In accordance with the diet above i also eat 10 cherries a day every day whether they be fresh or frozen and drink cherry based products daily too as well as 2 times day i take a teaspoon of lemon juice in a glass of water and drink that or if i havent got lemon a teaspoon of bi carb of soda. I hasten to add that gout can also be caused by stress, rapid weight loss, trauma ie surgery or even stubbing your toe and being pregnant for the women at least lol, but i have had gout for over 20 years i was diagnosed when i was 18 im now 42 and it has taken a long time to find and research this terrible disease and i would like to point out im not a doctor or anytihng but with the invention of the internet it hs been easier to find what causes gout, and how to deal with it on a daily basis, but as with all things different triggers for different people what trigger in one person will mostly be ok for another, try to keep a diary all everything you eat and drink for one month or 2 and then when you have a flare up you can look back and see the common denominator also gout is not restricted to the feet it can strike anywhere i have had attacks in my hands, knees, hips, ankles, shoulders and neck too, in the long run it is a debilitating disease with kidney problems and as gout is a form of arthritis chronic joint pain too. I hope this has been helpful to at least one person and i wish you all luck and hopefully a pain free life.
Really interesting and thorough. I seem to be one of the lucky ones. I have had a few knife-sharp stabbing pains in one of my big toes, but it goes away with a gel I use called Repareil. Hope I continue to be so lucky
Think you for all the info. I have gout as and I have a kidney disease. I am 65 and never had it till now and I didn’t know what to and thank you very much. I am going to try what you said.
Hi Randall you are very welcome, I have kidney disease too in fact we have a rogue gene on my maternal side so all my aunties uncles mum and me have a form of it so i dont know whether its the kidney disease which bought the gout on or vice versa but which ever i have been gout free apart from when i was pregnant 2 times for about 10 years i still have the occaassional twinge but if i help at least one person im satisfied xxx
THANK YOU!!
Thank you Karen,I appreciate what you have shared .
(I had my first episode of gout & am adjusting my diet) p.s. what you posted coincides with my Doctors instructions.
Bob.
Studies consistently support the usefulness of an evaluation by a physical therapist and instruction in appropriate exercise to reduce pain and improve function.
Studies consistently support the usefulness of an evaluation by a physical therapist and instruction in appropriate exercise to reduce pain and improve function
I have a form of arthritis called psoriatic arthritis. This is what happened to me, my knees swelled , my wrists ached. I could hardly walk my feet were in such pain. I was coated with psoriasis from head to toe. Out of desperation, I stopped eating sweets and all meat and bread. I became a total vegan. In two months time, I was 90% better. It is a struggle to give up foods that you love, but the alternative of living in pain is worse.
if you have severe problem with Gout, text or email me and I will tell you how to get rid of gout pain free, essentialsjcenterprises@gmail.com
Dietary intervention is the best prevention for conditions caused by uric acid buildups, such as joint pain and gout. Alkaline diet is effective in preventing such disorders.
Joint pain can be caused by injury or disease of the joint or adjacent tissues. A joint is the area at which two bone ends meet to provide motion to a body part
“According to Global RPH, approximately 2 million people suffer from gout, a form or arthritis, 75-90% of which are men.” And a study is done using only females. Does this make any sense?
It does help to watch what foods you eat if you have gout, but the only thing that makes it better are the herbs Yucca and Juniper Berry taken together. 3 Capsules of each 3 times a day until it gets better, you should notice a difference in 2 days. Eventually you can stop taking them and if it feels like it is coming back start taking them again…Natures Sunshine. It can settle in other joints other than the big toe, the weakest ones in your body. Such as knees, back, elbow etc. The doctors tell you the medicine they give you may make it worse before it gets better and who wants that.
Very interesting article. My husband regularly suffers from gout, and has had cancer and kidney stones ~ All related to a high acidic diet (which he consumes).
agree, to control uric acid level in the body, we have to control our diet..
hi i am pure veggie , but still facing uric acid problem . kindly advise how to get relief or diet to take .
Some years ago, I suffered with agonizing gout attacks and was actually on crutches at one point. My doctor finally prescribed allopurinal and I haven’t had a gout attack since I started taking it. And no side effects that I know of.