GOUT

GOUT sneaks up on its victims quietly. Many patients are first stricken in the middle of the night with an aching, throbbing, and exquisitely painful big toe. Usually the afflicted joint is swollen, red, and tender and, if the attack continues, the victim can develop fever and chills. Many people later realize that their first attack was stimulated or at least preceded by a bumped toe, surgery, too much alcohol, overeating or fasting, or medications such as penicillin, insulin, or certain “water pills” or diuretics. In fact, all or some of these factors can be implicated.

Most gout victims are male. In fact nearly 90 percent of people who suffer from gout are men over the age of thirty. But women are not immune, particularly if they are taking medications, such as those for hypertension that can predispose them to the condition.

Gout is caused by an increased concentration of uric acid in the fluids of the body. When the uric acid forms crystals and the crystals deposit in joints (like the big toe), tendons, or other tissues, they cause pain, inflammation, and eventually damage. You can have elevated uric acid without having the “gouty arthritis” attacks, as they are more precisely described.

If you develop gout when you are young and/or if you suffer from severe attacks, you should be under the treatment of a physician who can, if necessary, administer drugs to control the levels of uric acid in your body. A physician can also help alleviate the severe symptoms of an acute attack. But you should know that the medications do have side effects, some of them serious. They tend to be toxic to the digestive tract and can cause problems for people with stomach or intestinal difficulties. If you are on medications for gout and/or if you’ve had your first attack and are wondering if you can stave off future attacks, it’s worth trying the following preventive measures.

Obviously, if you’re on medication, you should consult your doctor on when and how best to reduce the medication to see if the natural treatment is working. If you’re on certain medications for high blood pressure, it is possible that the medication is precipitating your gout. In that case, you should ask your doctor if it’s possible for you to change or reduce your medications.

If you suffer from an acute attack of gout, you will probably want to take pain relievers. Be sure to use the right one. Aspirin can actually worsen your symptoms by inhibiting the excretion of uric acid. The best over-the-counter pain reliever for gout is ibuprofen, available by various names including Nuprin and Advil. Ibuprofen reduces inflammation and is more effective than other pain relievers including acetaminophen. If your symptoms persist, consult your doctor.

The first step to take to reduce gout attacks is reducing the amount of uric acid-rich foods-or foods with high purine levels in your diet. These foods increase the levels of uric acid in your blood and therefore can precipitate attacks. If you’re on medication, by the way, the medication is doing that job; if you want to try to eliminate the medication, you have to reduce the uric acid through diet. Foods rich in uric acid include: anchovies, shellfish, smoked meat, meat extracts, mincemeat that contains real meat, kidneys, liver, brains, sweetbreads, sardines, mackerel, yeast (baker’s and brewer’s), asparagus, mushrooms, and dried peas. While you are eliminating these foods from your diet, you should eat more fruits and vegetables, as they will reduce the acidity of your urine and decrease the likelihood of uric acid buildup.

People who are obese are more likely to suffer gout attacks than those with normal weight. Of course, if you are overweight you already know that you should lose weight for other health reasons. Remember that it’s crucial to lose weight gradually: no more than one or two pounds a week. A quick weight-loss diet can actually stimulate increased gout attacks.

You should also eliminate alcohol. Alcohol increases uric acid production and reduces its excretion, two of the worst things that can happen to a person with gout. For some people, eliminating alcohol can actually prevent recurrence of attacks.

Drinking adequate amounts of fluids is important. Not only will fluids dilute your urine and lessen the chance of uric acid crystals forming, but they will also help to prevent the formation of kidney stones. About 10 to 20 percent of gout victims develop kidney stones, so trying to prevent them before they form is important. You should aim for 2 quarts of fluids each day.

Stress can exacerbate gout. When I tell my patients this they tend to roll their eyes and I know they’re thinking there’s no way they can reduce stress because it’s built into their jobs, their families, and their lifestyles. It’s true you can’t get a stress-free job, but you can make an effort to control the stress in your life through exercise and stress-reduction techniques.

Vitamin A in large amounts can exacerbate gout. Make sure you take no more than 5,000 I.U. daily. If you are having attacks, you should stop all vitamin A intake.

Niacin can also raise uric acid levels and thus aggravate gout. You should therefore limit your niacin intake (which you might be taking to help control cholesterol) to no more than 100 mg. daily.

The final natural treatment is one I have never had experience with though I have read about it in the literature and have heard good reports about it. In the fifties, a doctor named Ludwig Blau accidentally discovered a remedy for his terrible gout that had confined him to a wheelchair. One day he ate a handful of cherries and noticed that the next day the agonizing pain in his toe was gone. If he continued to eat cherries, he was pain-free, but a relapse of even a day would bring back his pain. It is reported that you can use sweet or sour cherries and they can be fresh, frozen, or even canned to achieve Dr. Blau’s results. Cherries (and blueberries and other dark red or blue berries) are rich sources of substances that have a powerful ability to prevent collagen destruction. It is certainly worth a try. About a half-pound of cherries daily for a week could give you some positive results.

NATURAL TREATMENTS FOR GOUT

• Check your medications to see if they’re having any effect on your gout attack. Discuss them with your doctor.
• For pain relief rely on ibuprofen (Nuprin, Advil, etc.) but not aspirin (which can worsen symptoms) or acetaminophen (which is less effective), if you need a stronger, anti-inflammatory, consult your doctor.
• Adopt a low-purine diet, that is, one that eliminates foods that promote the production of uric add, Including anchovies, shellfish, smoked meat, meat extracts, mincemeat that contains real meat, kidneys, liver, brains, sweetbreads, sardines, mackerel, yeast (baker’s and brewer’s), asparagus, mushrooms, and dried peas.
• Maintain an optimum weight. If you are obese, you should lose weight, but be sure to do it gradually.
• Increase your fruit and vegetable consumption.
• Eliminate alcohol from your diet:
• Be sure to drink adequate fluids: 3 quarts liquid daily.
• Adopt stress-reducing techniques.
• Eat one-half pound of cherries each day, either canned, frozen, or fresh, If you don’t notice reduction of symptoms in a week or two, discontinue.
• Eliminate or reduce niacin. Don’t take more than 100 mg. daily.
• Don’t take more than 5,000 I.U. of vitamin A dally, and if attacks continue, eliminate vitamin A intake entirely.