Uric Acid

About two-thirds of your uric acid comes from your body recycling its own worn-out cells. The rest comes from what you eat and drink. An enzyme called xanthine oxidase handles the final step that makes it, the same step gout medications block.

Your kidneys do most of the cleanup. They filter uric acid out, then quietly reabsorb most of it back. Small shifts in how much gets reabsorbed swing your level up or down, which is why most high readings come from clearing too little, not making too much.

Your number tells you how much uric acid is moving in your blood, and it is one of the more changeable markers you have. Diet, drinks, weight, and hydration all move it, and medications can lower it directly. When it stays high it can crystallize in a joint and bring on gout, sudden pain and swelling that often starts in the big toe, or settle in the kidneys as stones. High readings also tend to travel with high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome.

The upside is that this is something you can act on. Many people carry a high level for years with no symptoms, so one reading is a clue, not a diagnosis. Low uric acid is uncommon and usually nothing to worry about. Read this alongside your other markers and with your clinician, who can tell you whether yours is worth nudging down.