Can you eat vinegar if you have hyperuricemia?

Written by Yang Li
Endocrinology
Updated on May 22, 2025
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It's not that you can't eat vinegar. Vinegar is an acidic substance. However, patients with hyperuricemia need to alkalize their urine to reduce uric acid and slightly alkalize the body's pH value, which means keeping it on the alkaline side within the normal range. In such cases, it is recommended to eat more alkaline foods. Alkaline foods facilitate the excretion of uric acid through urine and help lower blood uric acid levels. Of course, this does not mean that you cannot eat vinegar at all; you can consume it in moderation, but not excessively.

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Written by Li Hui Zhi
Endocrinology
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Hyperuricemia Complications

Common complications, the first is the effect on joints, manifested as local joint redness, swelling, heat, and pain, and even mobility impairment, usually referring to gouty arthritis. The second complication is the effect on the kidneys, resulting in hyperuricemic nephropathy, where the patient will experience abnormal kidney function. The third complication is the formation of gouty tophi, where many patients have deposits in the joints, leading to the occurrence of tophi and causing joint mobility impairment. Therefore, hyperuricemia needs to be treated promptly to prevent these complications.

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Written by Chen Xie
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How is hyperuricemia treated?

The treatment of hyperuricemia mainly includes: First, improving lifestyle, including healthy eating with a low-purine diet, quitting smoking, drinking more water, exercising regularly, and controlling weight. Second, alkalinizing the urine using sodium bicarbonate to maintain urine pH between 6.2 and 6.9, which facilitates the excretion of uric acid. Third, avoiding medications that increase blood uric acid levels, such as diuretics, corticosteroids, and insulin, among others. Fourth, using medications that lower uric acid, including drugs that increase uric acid excretion, mainly benzbromarone and probenecid, and drugs that inhibit uric acid synthesis, such as allopurinol and febuxostat. The choice of medication has specific indications, contraindications, and side effects, and it is advised to use these medications under the guidance of a specialist and not to self-medicate.

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Written by Luo Juan
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Hyperuricemia treatment agent

Currently, the main treatments for hyperuricemia in clinical practice include the following types. One category is drugs that inhibit uric acid synthesis, primarily allopurinol and febuxostat. Allopurinol is a xanthine oxidase inhibitor, which mainly works by preventing the conversion of hypoxanthine and xanthine into uric acid through the inhibition of xanthine oxidase. Febuxostat, on the other hand, is a newer xanthine oxidase inhibitor and may be more effective than allopurinol in lowering blood uric acid levels. Another category includes drugs that promote the excretion of uric acid, suitable for patients with normal renal function and hyperuricemia. These mainly include probenecid, benzbromarone, and some use of thiazide diuretics, though their effectiveness for hyperuricemia is somewhat controversial. (Specific medications should be taken under the guidance of a physician.)

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Written by Luo Juan
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Is hyperuricemia contagious?

Hyperuricemia is not contagious. Hyperuricemia refers to a condition where the concentration of uric acid in the blood exceeds the normal upper limit. Typically, for males and post-menopausal females, a blood uric acid concentration greater than 420 µmol/L, or pre-menopausal females with more than 348 µmol/L, is considered hyperuricemia. Most severe cases of hyperuricemia are due to deficiencies in uric acid metabolism enzymes and fall under the category of liver metabolism disorders. Moreover, mild to moderate hyperuricemia is often associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, arteriosclerosis, and coronary heart disease, among others. It is a type of nucleic acid metabolic disease, and therefore, it is not contagious.

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What foods to eat for hyperuricemia?

Dietary requirements for hyperuricemia primarily include a low-purine diet, avoiding foods high in purines. It's important to recognize which foods are high in purines, such as seafood and certain fish, which should be avoided. Secondly, some mushrooms and soy products also have higher levels of purines and should be consumed less frequently. Thirdly, alcohol, especially spirits and beer, must be avoided. Fourthly, one should avoid consuming rich, slow-cooked broths as they also contain high levels of purines. Lastly, it is recommended to drink more water, typically between 1500ml to 2000ml daily.