Nutrition Videos

Hi! I'm Stelios Pantazis. I'm a doctor and I specialize in medical nutrition and metabolic disorders. In this video we will talk about the importance of uric acid. Uric acid is a natural product of the digestion and metabolism of high-purine food. Increased uric acid in the blood can cause gout and kidney stones. It can also cause metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease. People with increased uric acid, a condition called hyperuricemia, are 16% more likely to die of any cause and 39% more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease, i.e. to suffer a heart attack, stroke, heart failure etc. We must stress that it's not entirely certain whether it's the increase of the uric acid itself, or the reason that uric acid concentration is high, e.g. high meat consumption, which increases the possibility of cardiovascular disease. The main causes of hyperuricemia are lower elimination or higher production of uric acid, or both. Some people, due to their genes, can't eliminate uric acid as easily. Others' systems produce more of it. The result is the same in both cases. I.e. increased uric acid concentration in the blood. Often, the problem is our way of life. Or, to be more exact, a metabolism that tends to produce more uric acid, combined with an unhealthy way of life. Increased belly fat and weight are connected with higher resistance to insulin and the production of leptin. These reduce the elimination of uric acid. Also, the synthesis of fatty acids, i.e. triglycerides in the liver is caused by high synthesis of purines that produce more uric acid. Diet is the best way to reduce uric acid levels in the blood. It can help as follows. First, eat less or avoid high-purine food altogether. These foods include offal, pork, turkey, fish and shellfish, lamb, beef, spinach, cauliflower, green peas, beans, mushrooms. We should stress that high-purine plant foods do not seem to contribute to hyperuricemia as much as animal-based ones do. Therefore it is better to eat less animal-based foods, or avoid them altogether, before cutting down on plant foods. Personally, I've never encountered a single person who had to eat less plant foods in order to bring their uric acid levels down to normal. Reducing or avoiding animal-based foodstuff is enough. Also, in order to ingest a large amount of purine from plant foods, you would have to consume an impossible quantity, e.g. half a pack of dry beans. Therefore, you should focus mainly on avoiding animal-based foods. Second, avoid sugar and processed foods. Avoid beverages or snacks that contain sugar. Also avoid sugar-like sweeteners, such as maltodextrine, glucose, fructose and maltose. In general, avoid processed foods as much as you can. Third, avoid drinking alcohol. Especially beer. Fourth, lose weight. Even if you don't change your diet, if you lose weight, you will have less uric acid in your blood. And it will help you in other areas as well. Fifth, reduce your insulin level through proper diet. Insulin is extremely important for your metabolism. High insulin may result in higher uric acid in your blood. So try to reduce your insulin through proper diet. Sixth, consume significantly more plant fibers. Eat cereal bran, legumes, except for beans, fruits and vegetables. Lastly, check your medication regimen. Some medicines can increase uric acid, such as high-pressure medicine, diuretics, aspirin (salospir), chemotherapeutics and immunosuppressants If you thought this was interesting, please give us a thumbs up. Share it with people who you think might find it interesting and subscribe to our channel in order to get notified when we upload a video. You can also suggest subjects in the comment section. Thank you very much!