Imagine enjoying a regular day’s routine full of dog walking, carpooling, and playing with your kids until you are suddenly crippled with pain. Now imagine not knowing when this can happen and that it can affect major joints required for walking and doing normal activities. This is a day in the life of someone who suffers from a disease called gout. This is a disease that concentrates arthritic attacks in specific parts of the body—and it is like living with the unknown, and require staing away from certain trigger foods and beverages, and adopting a lifestyle change.
Gout is primarily a man’s disease with 90 percent of the diagnoses being men over the age of thirty. To date, there are over 2 million sufferers throughout the United States. Gout, as a form of acute arthritis, comes about suddenly caused by an increase of uric acid in the blood. Gout can be spurred on by an excess of alcohol, causing the spike in uric acid; prescription drugs or post-surgery complications can also invite a case of gout. Some gout sufferers go asymptomatic for years between attacks, others have a harder time getting rid of it and multiple attacks over time can create chronic pain or disfigurement.
A commonly affected joint of gout is the big toe, an intensely painful joint because it affects walking. Other joints affected include the knees, feet, and ankles all needed to get around pain free. In addition to the pain experienced during a gout attack, the joint becomes inflamed and red. A fever can accompany the rest of the symptoms and bed rest is highly recommended. Alternating hot and cold compresses can help quell the inflammation along with avoiding foods like kidney, liver, sardines, and drugs like diuretics.
Natural ways of containing gout against an attack include eating a well-balanced diet. Nutritionists advise that drinking lots of water is a wonderful way to flush out your system and rid your body of unwanted and excess uric acid. Foods rich in vitamin C (oranges, cantaloupe, strawberries, cabbage, broccoli, tomatoes, kiwi, sweet red peppers, etc.) help protect the body against an arthritic episode as well as consuming cherries, as some studies say that cherries may decrease uric acid levels.
Another big role in the natural gout remedy world is relaxation. Exercise, meditation, and breathing techniques are often aids in releasing the tension caused by joint inflammation. Stress is also not good for gout sufferers and hypnotherapy is a proven way to reduce the pain. More types of non-invasive natural therapies for inducing calm can also keep you relaxed and hopefully gout-free.
Even though these natural ways to combat gout are not necessarily dangerous for you, any supplements or excess amounts of food you consume could negatively mix with any prescription drugs you may be taking so please consult your doctor before changing your routine drastically.
If you are a part of the population that lives with fear of the unknown because you do no know when gout could strike, try these little life changes in order for a little peace of mind. Maybe a massage once a month, a few sessions of acupressure or acupuncture to relieve stress, an eco-friendly large bottle that you can refill to remind you to drink more water during the day, and eating a diet full of vitamin C will keep gout where it belongs…out of your joints.
