Gout and Diabetes: How Are They Linked?

Gout is considered to be a type of arthritis. It can cause swelling and pain in the joints. It usually affects only one joint at a time, especially under the big toe. The main cause of gout is the high amount of uric acid in the body. This condition is called hyperuricemia. This causes swelling and pain in the joints. Usually the body excretes uric acid through urine, but consumption of a high purine diet makes the kidney unable to excrete uric acid quickly.

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• A patient suffering from type 2 diabetes is most likely to have hyperuricemia. On the other hand, people who have gout or suffer from high uric acid are more likely to have diabetes. It is important to understand here that not every person who has hyperuricemia has gout, but there is a high risk of becoming a victim of it.
• It is important to understand why type 2 diabetes occurs. It occurs when the body is unable to use insulin properly and sugar remains in the blood instead of going into the cells. This is called insulin resistance. According to research, insulin resistance plays an important role in the development of gout and hyperuricemia.
• According to research published in the American Journal of Medicine, people with high uric acid levels are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
• According to another research, the relationship between gout and diabetes is stronger in women. Research shows that women who have gout have a 71 percent higher risk of developing diabetes.
• Similarly, about 90 percent of people who have diabetes are obese or overweight. These people have a higher risk of developing gout than those who have a normal weight. Actually, being overweight reduces the kidney's ability to remove uric acid from the body.
• Not only this, 80 percent of people with type 2 diabetes have high blood pressure. It also increases the acid level and is also related to insulin resistance. Gout and diabetes are also related to kidney damage and heart disease.

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Gout and diabetes are both different diseases, but research says that there is a deep connection between the two. If you have gout, then there is a risk of diabetes and if you have diabetes, then there is a risk of getting gout. Therefore, to avoid gout and diabetes, it is important to keep the weight balanced, keep doing physical activity, follow a balanced diet and lifestyle.