Gout, again!

[jabo52521]

Woke up this morning. Left foot is swollen and angry. Dang that homemade pizza kit.

[ph4570]

Dried tart cherries and lots of water.

[paul h]

Yup, black cherries, lots of water and I find Ibuprofan really helps as it reduces the inflamation and thus your circulation improves and swelling and pain goes away faster.

[starmac]

My wife is in the middle of her very first bout with it. At first she thought she had somehow hurt it, but after a lot of pain and mostly staying off her feet she finally went to a doctor and it was gout. What a pain

[Beagle333]

The first time I got it, I woke up and thought I had broke my foot somehow. It was that bad. I couldn't put any weight on it. Cherry juice did make a difference. Some say no, I say try it!

[starmac]

She went to the doctor tuesday evening, after 9 days of not getting better.
They gave her some pretty stout steroids, and they seemed to help within a matter of hours. She actually went back to work yesterday, and while she is still limping pretty good it was at least tolerable. I couldn't find any cherry juice, but did pickup a couple of cans of cherries to see.

[Mtnfolk75]

Starmac,

My child bride of 39 years has been a victim of that curse for the last 10 or so years, 100% Black Cherry Juice has been the ticket to her relief. Hope your better half gets it under control.

Dusty

[starmac]

She does too, a couple of days there, I had to get the old bull whip out just to get her to fix supper. lol

[ph4570]

The steroids work wonders for short term relief but need to figure out the dietary triggers and keep up with the cherries and water, water and more water to flush out the uratic acid.

[bayjoe]

How long does do you take cherry juice before you see a difference?

[jabo52521]

Found some dried cherries in the cupboard. Drinking my fill of water. Hope this works. It ain't easy getting older.

[Mtnfolk75]

My better half usually gets some relief within the day.

[6bg6ga]

I unfortunately suffered for a year with bout after bout of the dreaded gout. I tried cherry juice and every home remedy that one can find on the internet along with the meds from the Dr. I had bouts of it so bad that for a week or better I couldn't walk but rather had to crawl to get from one room to another. Absolutely nothing helped me. It didn't seem to matter what I had for food intake either. What I did discover is that I have to intake 2 quarts of water daily in order to be Gout free.

The good old Dr. told be to increase my water pills and instead of taking one every other day to take one daily. This made matters worse as the water pill seemed to bring on the Gout attacks. I printed EVERYTHING I found off the internet that told me what foods to avoid. There was no rhyme or reason for what triggered my attacks except that maybe I simply didn't have enough water going thru my system.

Be your own judge but I will suggest that you intake 2 qts of water daily and keep records of your Gout attacks and what you have eaten and see if there is any proof that specific foods do trigger the Gout. My Dr. says the foods don't trigger Gout and that its is a result of the acid build up in your system and that water and fluids need to be taken.

Best of luck to you.

[jcwit]

Had gout 4/5 times a year years ago. Fifteen years ago my cancer Dr. put me on Allopurinol, haven't had an attack since.

Not going to mess around with home remedies when I know for a certain this works.

[jcwit]

My Dr. says the foods don't trigger Gout and that its is a result of the acid build up in your system and that water and fluids need to be taken.



So where do you spose the acid comes from????????????????????????

BTW, its just not any acid, it's Uric Acid. High levels of uric acid can cause urate crystals to form in the joints which is what causes the pain.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

sorry to hear that Jabo.
A neighbor and close friend struggles with gout. From what he says, all the home remedies are for prevention of a flareup. The Doctor meds are what are needed after a flareup. He is a veggie farmer, and his flareups are always after a long day in the field and he hadn't had enough water.
Jon

[wlc]

Doc prescribed Indocin for mine. When I feel an attack coming on I take two pills about every four hours till it stars to ease off then one pill twice a day till completely gone. Lately though the first dose usually gets rid of the attack completely and usually within less than a day. I try my best to drink PLENTY of water at all times as that helps keep you from getting an attack in the first place. The home remedies work for some and not so much so for others. I'll take my little green pills any day over the home remedies. Works MUCH faster.

One of my triggers is crab meat. The wife had made some crab dip for something or another with canned crab and I ate some and less than 2 hours later I was hurting.

I wouldn't wish a gout attack on my worst enemy.

[N4AUD]

Had gout 4/5 times a year years ago. Fifteen years ago my cancer Dr. put me on Allopurinol, haven't had an attack since.

Not going to mess around with home remedies when I know for a certain this works.

Same here. As long as I take it, no gout.

[williamwaco]

Colchicine works for me.

[flydoc]

Get your uric acid level checked. Got to get it down to less than 6 if you can. Allopurinol is cheap and effective and will prevent a world of hurt and further damage. Every attack causes joint damage and high uric acid levels allow some damage to occur that you may not sense between attacks.

[6bg6ga]

To me excessive Uric acid build up would mean your body/kidneys weren't doing their job. It seems kind of funny that one can go for years without any problems note some people never have a gout attack. I simply do not buy into the idea that certain foods trigger an attack. In my case I never ate any of the foods in the so called list that are supposed to trigger Gout attacks. Allopurinol, Colchicine, and Indocin didn't have any effect in helping in the least. Yes, I understand what Uric acid is and I understand it is expelled thru urine and feces. I also understand that when the body cannot do its job that is when you get an attack. My particular physician said no to certain foods causing an attack. So to me the internet cures of Cherry juice, vinegar, certain foods, and in particular the medicines had no affect. But, if it works for you then count your blessings.

[gkainz]

Is this what a gout attack looks like?
122037

[kfarm]

As I lay here on the bed I'm rubbing the ole gouty toe. I feel your pain. Mine hurts a little all the time and somewhat more quite often. However I have had only one real gout attack in the 10-15 years of knowing what I had, that hurt.

[Lance Boyle]

I can't say any of the home solutions worked for me. I tried dried cherries, black cherry juice, apple cider vinegar, etc. Water helps somewhat as you're diluting and washing out your system but it's generally very slow.

My triggers seemed to be around the holidays; wine, seafood, rich red meat like prime rib.

I was on allipurinol but I haven't been back to the doc in over a year to get a new script. I have had a couple days of gout this summer; dehydration did trigger it while working outside.

In years past it would be so bad I'd be walking around the house with a chair, my bad footed leg kneeling on said chair. Not the way to live for sure.

[MaryB]

Looks like reactive arthritis, does it hurt on top of the foot right behind the toes? Back of the ankle?


Is this what a gout attack looks like?
122037

[Rufus Krile]

Since I started taking the allopurinol I haven't had any more flare-ups... about 2 years now... At different times I've used Indomethecin and Ibuprofen for anti-inflammatories with mixed results. Tried the cherries... no joy. So it's 300mg Allopurinol once a day. Now if I could just figure out what to do with this arthritic hip...

[MtGun44]

Thank goodness I have never had any of this. Sounds miserable.

Here is what the Mayo Clinic says:
"Your body produces uric acid when it breaks down purines — substances
that are found naturally in your body, as well as in certain foods, such
as organ meats, anchovies, herring, asparagus and mushrooms.

Normally, uric acid dissolves in your blood and passes through your
kidneys into your urine. But sometimes your body either produces too
much uric acid or your kidneys excrete too little uric acid. When this
happens, uric acid can build up, forming sharp, needle-like urate crystals
in a joint or surrounding tissue that cause pain, inflammation and swelling.

Lifestyle factors. Choices you make in your everyday life may increase
your risk of gout. Excessive alcohol use — generally more than two
drinks a day for men and more than one for women — increases the
risk of gout.
Medical conditions. Certain diseases and conditions make it more
likely that you'll develop gout. These include untreated high blood
pressure (hypertension) and chronic conditions such as diabetes, high
levels of fat and cholesterol in the blood (hyperlipidemia), and
narrowing of the arteries (arteriosclerosis)."

Sounds like a lot of common illnesses of old age contribute. They also
mention that BP meds - thiazides - can make it happen.

If drinking water fixes it, that sounds like a heck of deal. Current cost
and availability of water are good. ;-)

Good luck to the suffers, I didn't know a thing about this before I went
looking.

Bill

[gkainz]

Looks like reactive arthritis, does it hurt on top of the foot right behind the toes? Back of the ankle?
Hi Mary, it hurt like the dickens across the top of the foot but not in the toe joints. This was about 6 months ago. Couldn't walk on it for a week. Doc diagnosed gout just by looking but then the uric acid levels came back normal. By that time the pain and swelling went down. I was suspicious for a few reasons - toe joints didn't hurt, didn't hurt to touch, but biggest - I broke a few small bones in same foot 10 years ago and same doc made same diagnosis - gout! Podiatrist confirmed broken bones, but apparently this doc is now spring-loaded towards a gout diagnosis on me!

[jaysouth]

My bouts with gout have the most painful remedies. No wine, beer, vodka, gin, bourbon, brandy, scotch, rum or apperitifs. Hmmm..............wonder if amputating my toe would let me get back on the wagon?

[kfarm]

I'll be thinking about y'all tomorrow while at the rumatoligist for a 6 month follow up and allupurional refill. Never occurred to me my nightly shot of cherry vodka was bad, I thought Cherry's were good. Dang!

[MaryB]

Exact same pain I get, it is a form of arthritis that flares when you get an infection, even a cold can set mine off.


Hi Mary, it hurt like the dickens across the top of the foot but not in the toe joints. This was about 6 months ago. Couldn't walk on it for a week. Doc diagnosed gout just by looking but then the uric acid levels came back normal. By that time the pain and swelling went down. I was suspicious for a few reasons - toe joints didn't hurt, didn't hurt to touch, but biggest - I broke a few small bones in same foot 10 years ago and same doc made same diagnosis - gout! Podiatrist confirmed broken bones, but apparently this doc is now spring-loaded towards a gout diagnosis on me!

[gkainz]

Exact same pain I get, it is a form of arthritis that flares when you get an infection, even a cold can set mine off.
Thanks for the update, and my condolences for the pain! I suspect you're right about the arthritis ... I've noticed some slowly increasing ankle and elbow pain and stiffness in the mornings ... darn those Ritis boys! That Art, he's the worst of the bunch!

[MaryB]

Takes me a good 2 hours to get moving in the morning now, entire back, hips/knees/fingers/wrists/shoulders... all are stiff when I get up

[Possumcop]

See your Dr and get a prescription for allopurinol, take it as prescribed and drink plenty of water. Don't expect it to provide relief if you're actually having an acute attack though.

For that you need a prescription for Indomethacin.

But if you take the Allopurinol like you're supposed to, over time your purine levels will drop to normal and you will NO LONGER HAVE GOUT.

I'm not a Doctor, but I can say that I haven't had an attack in 18 years now and I don't miss 'em at all.

More power to you if you can keep it under control with home remedies and diet, but as far as I'm concerned, gout is too painful and damaging to your joints to mess around. See your Doctor, he can probably help.

[Lead Fred]

two years ago my uric acid level was 742, 750 is critical. Now my level is 255.
All I did was change my diet, stop drinking what I was drinking, and the level when down

[wallenba]

Recently had an attack too. Cherries didn't help me much, just time. I can sympathize.

[Possumcop]

two years ago my uric acid level was 742, 750 is critical. Now my level is 255.
All I did was change my diet, stop drinking what I was drinking, and the level when down

Hmmm... I hate to see anyone do something DRASTIC! :drinks:

Seriously though, good on you.

I gave up beer, beef, booze, mushrooms and even beans, but nothing really helped until I got on the Allopurinol.