Bone Health 147J. P. Seegmitten in his book Gout writes that humans suffer from
gout because they lack an enzyme called uricase that in animals con-
verts uric acid into a more soluble substance.^6 In fact, humans don’t
need this enzyme. As long as normal levels of uric acid are maintained
it’s easily excreted from the urine. It is only when blood uric acid levels
go so high that they endanger the stability of the blood’s acid-alkaline
balance (pH factor 7.4) that the excess uric acid is removed from the
blood and deposited as far away from the major blood supplies as pos-
sible—in the toes, wrists, or earlobes.Lowering Uric Acid Levels in the Blood
How can elevated uric acid blood levels be lowered? Because purine (a
white crystalline compound) and nucleic acid break down into uric acid,
doctors recommend that individuals with gout avoid eating foods with
a high purine or nucleic acid content, such as liver, sweetbreads, game,
herring, anchovies, lobster, crab, sardines, pork, and avocados. With
the exception of pork, foods rich in purine and nucleic acid are, as a
rule, not eaten often enough to cause gout.
The different types of arthritis Emily suffered from showed that she
had a wide range of enzyme defi ciencies. To remedy this, Emily took a
supplement that contained enzymes that break down fat, protein, and
starch. She also took ox bile powder to emulsify fat globules (see
Resources). This enzymatic complex lessened the pains in her muscles,
but it was the CoQ-10 she took that improved her digestion. Good
digestion eliminates the acidic waste by-products of undigested food
debris that end up in mineral deposits on bones, tendons, and
muscles.
To reduce the size of the spurs in her heels, Emily underwent an
ultrasound and paraffi n wax treatment in a hospital. Her feet were
dipped in hot wax ten times and then subjected to eight minutes of
high-frequency sound waves. This alternative treatment, which is very
popular with doctors in Germany, dissolved Emily’s heel spurs. A few
years later she took her husband to the hospital to have the same treat-
ment, but the hospital had stopped the procedure, claiming that it didn’t
work. Emily said that no one had asked her whether the treatment
helped her. She wonders if the medical staff at the hospital found it too
much trouble to administer—or too controversial.