Significance of Urinary Tartaric Acid

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Letter to the editor of Clinical Chemistry supporting the claim that urinary tartaric acid is not a valid measure of yeast overgrowth. Richard S. Lord, PhD, Cheryl Burdette, ND, J. Alexander Bralley, PhD, CCN

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Lord RS, Burdette CK, and Bralley JA, “Significance of Urinary Tartaric Acid.” Clin Chem. 2005. 51(3): p. 672-3.

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In 1995, Shaw et al. reported the gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric identification and quantification of various compounds in the urine of two autistic brothers. In that report the authors concluded that the presenceof several compounds, including tartaric acid (excreted as tartarate), may be causally related to the autistic symptoms and that their origin is an overgrowth of intestinal yeast. The practice of analyzing urine for these compounds to detect intestinal yeast continues, although several lines of evidence contradict these conclusions. It was concluded that dietary sources strongly influence the concentration of urinary tartarate and that its production by intestinal yeast or bacteria is insignificant. Tartaric acid in human urine specimens provides no evidence regarding yeast overgrowth or toxic consequences.