Gout and Alcohol: An intimate relationship not to be missed

People with gout definitely understand how important uric acid in the blood is to the person's condition. Foods that contain too many purines or calories cause fat and fatty acids to accumulate, which can lead to acute gout attacks and make gout worse.

Gout can cause extremely dangerous health complications such as blood pressure, joint necrosis infection, loss of joint mobility. For complications of infection, broken tophi crystals can lead to sepsis and be life-threatening.

To control the disease we need to follow the principles that help uric acid excretion. This compound is mainly excreted in the urine, so a healthy excretion system helps the body away from the risk of gout.

Why does alcohol cause gout?

Gout develops from the accumulation of a chemical in the blood called uric acid. The body makes uric acid when it breaks down chemicals called purines, found in foods like seafood and meat. Normally, uric acid is dissolved in the blood and then removed from the body through urine. If there is too much uric acid in the body, it can turn into crystals in your joints and cause painful gout pain.

Alcohol has been shown to cause gout flares in several ways, including:

By increasing the amount of uric acid your body makes
By preventing the body from eliminating uric acid as quickly as usual
By causing dehydration

The combination of all three factors makes a person more likely to suffer from gout if you drink alcohol. Dehydration, in particular, can cause gout because there is not enough water in the body, the kidneys cannot eliminate excess uric acid that causes gout. Alcohol only worsens this process. When a person drinks alcohol, it switches off a chemical in their brain called antidiuretic hormone, or ADH. Without enough ADH, someone can become dehydrated very quickly because they will urinate a lot in a short time. Dehydration increases the chances of a person suffering from gout.

Mechanism of increasing uric acid in alcohol

For gout sufferers, the most important thing is to reduce the concentration of uric acid in the blood. The frequent use of alcohol for people with gout makes the condition worse and worse.

Destruction of liver cells, decreased kidney and liver function

Between gout, liver, kidneys and alcohol are closely related as an inseparable cycle. When the body regularly receives compulsory alcohol according to liver and kidney function, it must perform the function of filtering and eliminating toxic substances from the body. However, only in small numbers and infrequently, nothing will happen.

Impaired liver and kidney function is caused by excessive alcohol use over a long period of time. Usually alcohol meals entail a series of protein and fat intake. It is the source of many diseases including gout.

Alcohol reduces uric acid excretion

The main ingredient in wines is ethanol or alcohol. This substance into the bloodstream will convert into acetic acid an extremely toxic acid base. Acetic acid works by reducing the solubility of uric acid in the blood, resulting in stagnation of uric acid and formation of urate crystals.

Gout will get worse if uric acid levels don't decrease. The more you drink alcohol, the more acettic acid inhibits the dissolution of uric acid into the bloodstream and excreted in the urine.

Increased uric acid due to protein in alcohol

Not only does it inhibit the elimination of uric acid in the blood, alcohol also contains protein after being converted into uric acid, which increases the concentration of this substance in the blood.

Common symptoms of alcohol use and gout

If a person drinks alcohol, they may have gout attacks within a few days, due to increased uric acid and dehydration in the body. The attacks tend to develop suddenly and without warning, and the symptoms of gout are difficult to ignore. When gout occurs, symptoms can last for days or even weeks and alcohol use only aggravates gout symptoms.

Common symptoms of alcohol and gout use include:

Severe pain in a joint (usually the big toe)
Swelling in a joint
Redness in a joint
Feeling that the joint is hot to the touch
Ineffective coordination (if drunk)
Judgment of lack of thinking (if drinking alcohol)
Increased risk of alcoholism

Related Content: Bacteria in The Gut That Treat Gout

What types of alcohol cause gout?

Studies have shown that all types of alcohol cause gout. Doctors often think that beer and alcohol are more likely than alcohol to cause gout, but recent research shows that all forms of alcohol can cause gout.

In addition, alcohol intake does not matter; Gout can flare up even if a person doesn't drink much or regularly. Health experts often tell people to avoid all alcohol if they have gout.

==> The End of Gout