Do Celery Seeds Protect Against Gout?
Celery is a versatile vegetable - you could almost classify it as thre different vegetables. The root (celeriac) and the stems (celery) are common in cooking and very good for gout sufferers thanks to their high mineral and fiber content. But the prize, supposedly, are the seeds. At least from a gout perspective. But they are used in perfume too. If I was not such a lousy gardener, maybe I should try to plant some in the vegetable patch.
Celery stalks is only one part the celery plant you can eat.
As you probably know by now, I want to know what the science says before running off into doing a test. And there is actually some lab tests that may show that celery seed can decrease the uric acid production in rats by inhibiting the enzymes which become uric acid - same as Allopurinol. I summarized the papers at the end of this page since it can be a tough read.
TEST PLAN CONSIDERATIONS
So how do I plan to test if celery seeds actually lower uric acid production? There are four considerations:
First I need a high uric acid level to know if it is getting lowered. Well, that one is easy, just eat a high- purine diet.
Second, the dosage. This is trickier, since the scientific evidence is based on rats, and while their metabolism is similar to humans, it is not the same. And I am a thousand times larger than a lab rat. To complicate things further, they used extracts which are not so easy to replicate in a home setting. And different scientists use slightly different extracts.
Another concern is that I do not want to poison myself. Or set off another blood pressure crisis, as I did when taking bicarbonate of soda. Bicarbonate of soda becomes salt in your stomach, and that is an extremely bad idea if you are salt sensitive, since it set off my blood pressure and caused it to go through the stratosphere. It took two weeks to get down. I do not want something similar to happen.
So I decided to use a little more than the recommended dose written on the Bulk Supplements celery seed extract bag: One teaspoonful in the morning, one in the evening.
Third, the verification of the uric acid. But I do that every day anyway, using the UASure uric acid meter. You can read more about my experiences here.
Fourth, how long should I do it? Well, the scientific papers that were published on the subject used two weeks and eight days, respectively. Two weeks should be enough.
First I need a high uric acid level to know if it is getting lowered. Well, that one is easy, just eat a high- purine diet.
Second, the dosage. This is trickier, since the scientific evidence is based on rats, and while their metabolism is similar to humans, it is not the same. And I am a thousand times larger than a lab rat. To complicate things further, they used extracts which are not so easy to replicate in a home setting. And different scientists use slightly different extracts.
Another concern is that I do not want to poison myself. Or set off another blood pressure crisis, as I did when taking bicarbonate of soda. Bicarbonate of soda becomes salt in your stomach, and that is an extremely bad idea if you are salt sensitive, since it set off my blood pressure and caused it to go through the stratosphere. It took two weeks to get down. I do not want something similar to happen.
So I decided to use a little more than the recommended dose written on the Bulk Supplements celery seed extract bag: One teaspoonful in the morning, one in the evening.
Third, the verification of the uric acid. But I do that every day anyway, using the UASure uric acid meter. You can read more about my experiences here.
Fourth, how long should I do it? Well, the scientific papers that were published on the subject used two weeks and eight days, respectively. Two weeks should be enough.
SO, WHEN DO YOU START?
Actually, I started already. As usual, I report every day on thegoutbeater.com blog, so everyone can read what is going on. I will probably be finished around the middle of May, and then I will report what happened here.
I WANT TO TRY. WHERE CAN I GET CELERY SEED EXTRACT?
I got my celery seed extract from Bulk Supplements, which is a company that packages supplements without fancy capsules and labels, and especially not expensive marketing. That makes it cheaper for them to send - and for you to receive. Yes, you have to think a bit about what you are taking and how much, but it is no real chore. At least with the savings you make.
WHAT ABOUT THE SCIENCE?
There is evidence from trials with rats that celery seed extracts can reduce the production of uric acid in the liver, by inhibiting the production of xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) and xanthine oxidase (XO), the two enzymes which turn to uric acid when they are used up. But often, the researchers focus on one specific component of the celery seeds.
In "Inhibitory Effects of Apium graveolens on Xanthine Oxidase Activity and Serum Uric Acid Levels in Hyperuricemic Mice" published in 2018, the researchers did a comparison between allopurinol and celery seed extract by giving it to mice orally (i.e. the mice ate it, which means it passed through the digestive apparatus of the mice, rather than being injected straight into the liver) during a period of two weeks. They were able to show a reduction of the uric acid in the blood from 4.6 to 2.3 mg/ dL. If humans with hyperuricemia react the same way, it would be an inprovement on par with allopurinol.
In another paper, "Anti‑gouty arthritis and anti‑hyperuricemia properties of celery seed extracts in rodent models" published in 2019 the researchers used a slightly different celery seed extract and a different methodology (giving the extract orally for 8 days). But they also noticed the reduction in enzyme activity and uric acid production, and in addition saw a reduction in inflammatory activity, which is consistent with traditional usage but has not been shown before.
In "Inhibitory Effects of Apium graveolens on Xanthine Oxidase Activity and Serum Uric Acid Levels in Hyperuricemic Mice" published in 2018, the researchers did a comparison between allopurinol and celery seed extract by giving it to mice orally (i.e. the mice ate it, which means it passed through the digestive apparatus of the mice, rather than being injected straight into the liver) during a period of two weeks. They were able to show a reduction of the uric acid in the blood from 4.6 to 2.3 mg/ dL. If humans with hyperuricemia react the same way, it would be an inprovement on par with allopurinol.
In another paper, "Anti‑gouty arthritis and anti‑hyperuricemia properties of celery seed extracts in rodent models" published in 2019 the researchers used a slightly different celery seed extract and a different methodology (giving the extract orally for 8 days). But they also noticed the reduction in enzyme activity and uric acid production, and in addition saw a reduction in inflammatory activity, which is consistent with traditional usage but has not been shown before.
SO, HOW DID THE CELERY SEEDS WORK AGAINST GOUT?
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To prevent gout, you need to lower your uric acid level. Allopurinol does this by slowing down the enzyme production in your liver, so the amount of enzymes which can be turned to uric acid decreases. There were indications from trials on rats that this could happen, as you could read above. You can read the explanation in my book "Gout Simply Explained" where I try to sort through what connects the dots between your diet and your gout.
But it did not work that way on me. I may not have given it enough time, because I ran out of celery seeds. Usually, you will not get any effect until after two weeks. I will have to come back to it at some other time. Maybe without high purine diet. Here are the results: May 6: 7.4 mg/dL May 7: 9.5 mg/dL May 8: 8.6 mg/dL May 9: 9.7 mg/dL For comparison, here are readings from the previous four days: May 2: 9.1 mg/dL May 3: 9.3 mg/dL May 4: 8.2 mg/dL May 5: 7.2 mg/dL And here are the readings from the following four days: May 10: 7.0 mg/dL May 11: 8.3 mg/dL May 12: 7.7 mg/dL May 13: 8.2 mg/dL As you can see, there is no big change. Even though I gave up the high-protein diet on the 10th. But before then there was no change over the week before. According to the mouse trial resuls, I was expecting at least some effect, considering that the mice halved their uric acid levels when eating celery seed extracts. But this time the trial time was really too short. I need more celery seed extract for next time. So I will pause this experiment for now, and come back to it later. |
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