Archive for the 'What Is Gout' Category
April 3rd, 2010 -- Posted in What Is Gout |
Have you ever wondered what uric acid is and how it relates to gout? Knowing what this acid is that causes gout is the first step to understanding how to prevent your gout attacks and symptoms. Read on to learn more. For people who have experienced gout and had the trouble and pain of dealing with it, the idea of finally getting relief is a welcome thought. If you need to get rid of your gout and get your life back then understanding how uric acid interacts with the rest of your body to cause gout is an important first step. The more you know about the condition the better you can maintain, reduce or completely eliminate your symptoms and pain. Read on to learn more about what uric acid is and how it relates to gout.
Uric acid is a white, odorless, tasteless by-product of a protein metabolizing. In other words, it’s an acid your body produces when ever proteins are broken-down inside your body. This happens through various methods and for various reasons, but it’s a completely natural process that in itself poses no harm. The real problem is when this uric acid begins to “pile up” and stick around the joints due to lack of hydration, circulation, or any number of reasons that prevent proper flushing of the acid out of the body. This is most common in older people, which is why gout is so common with people over 50.
Now that you understand what gout is and what exactly it’s doing in your body, the real goal now is to find out how to prevent and treat gout. One key universal preventative measure is to always drink on average 2 to 3 liters of water a day. No matter what you’re doing drinking water always benefits the body. It will help your body flush out the acid more efficiently and readily and your entire body will benefit from being able to function better.
A diet for gout is another important thing to keep in mind. Making sure you only eat foods that have low purines will ensure you don’t encourage uric acid build up. Uric acid can build up due to the breakdown of the purines in the food. There are some good foods that you can eat that will not only taste great but will help cure your gout. Some fruits like cherries and pineapple are great for relieving pain and reducing inflammation.
Taking proper measures to stay hydrated and maintain a proper diet are all great ideas for relieving or completely eliminating future gout attacks, but there are other ways to get relief as well. You can seek the help of an online guide or book that will help you by providing natural home remedies that can also get you gout relief.
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February 20th, 2010 -- Posted in What Is Gout |
Is it possible there’s a link in between arthritis and gout? Read on to find out what the link between the two very similar conditions might be, and how you can get gout relief or cure your arthritis once you understand the link between the two.
Gout is a painful problem that impacts many people, typically those who are older in age and have a less than perfect diet. If you’re going to get cured of your gout or arthritis-like symptoms then knowing exactly what’s causing them is the first step and finding the link between the two is the second. Let’s take a look at what might be causing your arthritis or gout to flare up.
Firstly, what is the connection between the two? Gout is a certain kind of arthritis that many people get at one point or another in their lives. The good news is that gout is easily cured, at least much more easily than other forms of arthritis. The large toe is the most common place to get gout in the body but there are other exceptions. For example some people get gout or arthritis symptoms in their legs or feet, possibly even other joints on their bodies.
What causes gout and these swollen joint symptoms? The answer is simple: too much uric acid crystallizing in the joints. This can happen from not staying hydrated enough, having a poor diet, not being active enough and it generally just becomes common with age. Some of the symptoms that are associated with gout are intense joint pain, pain when sleeping (or trying to sleep) or red and purple skin around the joint or affected area.
Dealing with gout can seem hopeless, but rest assured there are some ways you can get rid of it or at the very least reduce your pain. A good way to find gout relief is to ingest more fresh fruits like cherries or pineapple. These fruits will help eliminate the uric acid from your joints and ease your pain. If you can’t find any fresh fruit you can try juice (make sure it’s 100% fruit juice) or frozen cherries even.
Another good gout cure is taking over the counter supplements or topical lotions in an effort to help reduce the pain. If you can’t find a good at home remedy that helps to ease your pain or you want to try something that is proven to work, Uricinex is one of the over the counter remedies that works best for gout relief. Always stay entirely hydrated and drinking at least 5 cups of water daily, preferably more. The better hydrated you are the easier you can rid your body of gout and get back on track to a healthy and happy body.
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October 10th, 2009 -- Posted in What Is Gout |
What is gout is a question usually asked by a fist time suffers of this disease. To begin with gout is a form of arthritis translated; arthritis means joint inflammation. Arthritis is a number of conditions that causes damage to the joints of the body. Gouty arthritis is caused by the build up of uric acid crystals in the joints, causing inflammation. Gout accounts for approximately 5 percent of all cases of arthritis. This disease can progress through four stages:
Asymptomatic (without symptoms) hyperuricemia – In this stage, a person has elevated levels of uric acid in the blood (hyperuricemia), but no other symptoms. Treatment is usually not required.
Acute gout, or acute gouty arthritis – In this stage, hyperuricemia is responsible for the deposit of uric acid crystals in joint areas. This leads to a sudden onset of intense pain and swelling in the joints, which also may be warm and very tender to the touch. An acute attack commonly occurs at night and can be triggered by stressful events, alcohol or drugs, or the presence of another illness. Attacks usually subside within 3 to 10 days, even without treatment, and the next attack may not occur for months or even years. Over time, however, attacks can last longer and occur more frequently.
Interval or intercritical gout – This is the period between acute attacks. In this stage, a person does not have any symptoms of gout. At this stage of the disease a person sometimes becomes complacent and stops’ inquiring about what is gout, unaware of the dangers of the fourth stage of this disease.
Chronic tophaceous gout – This is the most disabling stage of gout. It usually develops over a long period, such as 10 years. In this stage, the disease may have caused permanent damage to the affected joints and sometimes to the kidneys. With proper treatment, most people with gout do not progress to this advanced stage.
At present there is no cure for gout. The first line of defense against gout should always be to consult your doctor. With the correct diagnoses and treatment gout is preventable. Don’t wait until your first attack to ask what is gout?
If you found this article helpful and informative please leave a comment. You may also find this article by the New York Times on acute gouty arthritis of interest as well.
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August 20th, 2009 -- Posted in What Is Gout |
What is gout? It’s the question a lot of suffering people are asking. Usually when sufferers start looking for answers about gout they have already started experiencing the agonizing affects of this disease. If they had inquired about this disorder a few years earlier a lot of needless agony could have been avoided.
So what is gout? Basically it amounts to have too much uric acid flowing in your bloodstream. When uric acid builds up to sufficient amounts it turns into needle like crystals that can lodge in various joints of your body. Increased levels of uric acid can also form what is known as tophi. Tophi come about when someone suffers from gout for many years. This condition takes the shape of white clumpy masses that build up in cartilage, joints, or skin. Whatever shape gout takes on both forms can cause a large amount of discomfort and pain.
Let’s take for example a normal healthy body; it will pass uric acid from the body by way of the urinary track. However, there’re some conditions that can hamper this function. Beside the type of lifestyle, eating practices can have a large affect on the way this condition develops. This would be why doctors recommend a new diet for someone with gout. A blend of prescription medicines and a change in diet is usually the best formula to achieve some long-term gout relief.
One of the drawbacks to having a prescribed diet for gout is that it limits the foods we consider to be extremely mouth-watering and like to indulge frequently. Establishing a regular exercise routine to include a full range of movement for the affected joints is very beneficial. Another change in eating habits would be to stay away from food rich in purine and salt to help lower the bodies production of uric acid, a contributing factor in gout sufferers.
Many diets prescribed for gout have red meat and seafood varieties drastically reduced to lower purine intake. Foods high in sugar should be eliminated from gout diets because the fructose a simple sugar that is found in fruits and honey can contribute to the production of uric acid. When the foods that produce high uric acid levels are identified a diet low in sodium and foods containing low sugar like leafy green vegetables and drinking plenty of water should be followed.
This all might seem like a drastic lifestyle change, but having a special diet for gout and adding in a exercise routine to your daily activities has been found to produce the best results for long term gout relief. One of the benefits to incorporating this change in your life is reducing the dependence on drugs in particular anti inflammatory for gout relief. By following your new diet you should be able to go back to a normal enough lifestyle with a better understanding of what is gout.
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