what is gout and how do you know if you have it?
361564
Gout is caused by a buildup of uric acid in your joints.  My father-in-law and two brothers-in-law have it, and it's very painful.  Usually will show up in toes, feet or knees.  Can usually be traced in men in the family (genetic).  \n\nThe only way to be sure is to go to your doctor and get tested.  They have a medication if it's really bad.  \n\nUsually, certain foods tend to set it off (a flare).  For my in-laws, peanuts are a major no-no!  Every single time, and whammo!\n\nThe uric acid can cause other problems, too, so if you are suspecting gout, you need to be tested.\n\nGood luck and God bless!
175551
Dr. prescribed medications and strict diet guidelines. No meat, beans, and fried foods. Cherries, blueberries, strawberries are some natural foods to combat gout. There is no cure, just everyday maintenance and regular blood work to monitor uric acid levels. Consult your doctor for a list of no-no foods and good luck.
1165451
You should probably drink more water, and read up on how your kidney's function.  The uric acid that is produced by your body is it's way of eliminating metabolic wastes.  Its not good to keep it.
506519
In a word....junk food.\n\nAlso, gout is much more an issue if clearing purines from your body than bringing them in.  Look at the food lists of high purine foods.  Who the hell eats that stuff?  Not me and not anyone I know including those who have gout.  The real culprit is too much salt and drinking almost no water.  Your kidneys are finding it difficult to excrete the normal amount of purines.  If you take blood pressure meds, understand that they can cause gout for similar reasons (especially diuretics) and ESPECIALLY if you have any renal insufficiency.  Go have your meds re-assessed if this is the case.\n\nAny waym normal foods that most people like to eat are low in purines.  A notable exception is processed foods.  Avoid them.  Drink plenty of water (and nothing else).
332481
If you go to www.wedmd.com you can type in your perscription medication and it will tell you what it reacts to. It is a useful tool. I used to use it all the time when my father was alive. He was on 19 different medications for his heart, kidneys, gout, and allergies. \n\nFurthermore if in doubt check with a pharmacist and/or doctor. \n\n*Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and all information given should be noted as such. For professional opinions contact your personal physician.*
638610
What is gout? \n\nGout is a form of arthritis marked by sudden attacks of painful, inflamed joints. It is characterized by pain, swelling, redness, and warmth (inflammation) as well as stiffness in a joint or joints. Without treatment, gout attacks tend to recur and may cause severe damage to joints, tendons, and other tissues. Gout is most common in men.1\n\nWhat causes gout? \n\nGout is caused by too much uric acid in the blood (hyperuricemia). Hyperuricemia usually does no harm, and most people with high levels of uric acid in the blood never develop gout. When uric acid levels in the blood are too high, uric acid may form crystals that accumulate in the joints. The exact cause of hyperuricemia sometimes goes undiscovered, although inherited factors (genes) seem to play a role. Gout can seem to flare up without specific cause or can be brought on by factors such as being overweight, eating meats and seafood that are high in chemicals called purines, taking certain medications (especially aspirin and diuretics), and drinking too much alcohol.
398784
Goiter means your thyroid gland is big. You can have a goiter even with a normal thyroid function test. The only way to find out if there's anything in it is by ultrasound, thyroid scan or a biopsy if a prominent nodule can be felt. These tests are easy and totally painless except for a biopsy of course if needed.\n\nDont be scared you are young and most likely it is not a serious thing and is manageable by drugs. Flag signs for worrying are old age, history of thyroid cancer and shooting high thryoid function tests.
62840
Gout is a condition from an accumulation of uric acid in the body, which exists often as crystals once out of the blood.  If this uric acid accumulates in the joints, this will cause inflammation - which is arthritis.\n\nUric acid will accumulate either if there's an overproduction of it, or if your body is incapable getting rid of it.  The kidneys should be able to filter out the uric acid from the blood and then excrete it in the urine.  Any part of this process can break down, leading to a build-up of uric acid in the body and in the joints.
496439
Why are you taking protein powder? Uric acid rises with the rise in protein. Be careful. Check with your doctor what levels are appropriate for your needs. Pains in your back and legs suggest that you may be excercising? Is this the case? Is this the reason for the powder? You may have strained your back which could have caused pressure on the sciatic nerve. Again, check with your doctor. So many people do these things without really knowing if it's appropriate and can often be better advised by a professional.
193546
Gout and Cherry Juice  \n\nGout Remedy | Gout Symptom | Gout Treatment | Information on Gout | The Gout Diet | Gout Natural Home Remedy | Natural Cure for Gout | Gout and Cherry Juice | Gout Nutrition and Diet Information | Foods to Avoid with Gout\n\nIt is well known that gout can be helped with cherry juice and cherries. The reason that cherry juice and cherries help prevent and reduce symptoms of gout is because cherries contain flavonoids which help reduce high uric acid levels. High uric acid levels may lead to the development of gout. In addition, when uric acid crystals start to accumulate in the joint, flavonoids prevent substances which cause inflammation from entering the joint.\n\nPeople have been reporting the beneficial effects of cherries and cherry juice as a natural gout cure. You can use canned cherries or fresh cherries and it does not matter if you use sour or sweet cherries. All cherries have been reported to be a natural gout cure. The amount of cherries to eat a day is between ten cherries and up to one half pound. Some people also found taking cherry juice concentrate (1 tablespoon per day) can help cure gout. Others have reported that drinking 1 6 oz glass of Knudsen Black Cherry Juice one to two times per day can cure gout.\n\nThe relation between gout and cherry juice was studied in a 1950 Texas study of twelve patients who were gout sufferers. When there patients were given about a pound of fresh or canned cherries a day (or the equivalent amount of cherry juice), uric acid levels went down to normal and they did not suffer any more attacks of gouty arthritis. In addition, these patients reported increased movement in the small joints normally affected by gout such as their fingers and toes when including the cherries in their diet.\n\nAnother, more recent, study on the relation between gout and cherry juice was published in the Journal of Natural Products in 1999. This study demonstrated that patients who ate at least twenty cherries per day gave similar pain relief as aspirin and other pain killers because the cherries inhibited compounds that caused inflammation of the joints. They discovered that twenty cherries a day provides between twelve and twenty-five milligrams of active flavonoid compounds (anthocyanins). These flavonoids can reduce the free radical damage as well as reduce inflammation in the joints.\n\nIn addition to cherries and cherry juice, gout can be helped by consuming other dark red berries such as blueberries, hawthorn berries etc. because these berries also contain the beneficial flavonoids. Flavonoids are what create the dark red color in these berries.To get the most success for preventing gout, thirty-two ounces cherry juice that is both organic and not from concentrate (you can find this in most health food stores) should be consumed along with lots of water as soon as the feeling of gout is beginning to start. The following day, consume another thirty-two ounces of cherry juice. You should experience pain relief right away.\n\nGout can be helped by consuming either cherry juice, cherries or other dark red berries on a daily basis. This natural cure is much better for your health than taking pain killers and is actually more effective in preventing attacks of gout. The beneficial effects of cherry juice on gout can be backed up both by scientific research as well as hundreds of testimonials by people who have tried it. Cherries and cherry juice cannot hurt you so it is well worth it to try it out for yourself.\n\nOne of the most common forms of arthritis is gout. Gout is characterized by joint inflammation accompanied by terrible pain and sometimes red, shiny skin covering the joint. An attack of gout appears suddenly, often overnight and most often affects the feet and ankles, with the most common area being the ball of the large toe. Gout usually affects only one or two joints at a time.\n\nThe first attack of gout usually will disappear on its own after about a week but
501464
Colchicine is a prescription medication used in the treatment of gout. Gout is an inflammatory joint disorder cause by the accumulation of uric acid. The mechanism through which colchincine operates is not well characterized, but it is known that colchicine inhibits the formation of micotubules. This inhibition of microtubule formation keeps cells from replicating. I'm not sure of genetic experiments, but Hydra, a cnidarian, can be made neuron-free by treatment with colchicine. It's not a useful experiment, but it's kind of cool.
733220
If you are not sure than the best option is to see the doctor, they can do an exam and check a couple of things and determine what it is for sure
524312
First of all let me point out a thing or two. The health ramifications of obesity are much more serious in the long run. Secondly, the evidence for protective( from gout) effects of fatty diet is very thin. It is also important that dietary modifications in general do rarely lower the level of uric acid sufficiently to prevent future attacks in a person with gout. In short the importance of diet should not be over emphasized as regards gouty arthritis. Importantly, however, alcohol intake should be reduced to prevent future attacks.  The bottome line: advice people to lost weight because this is helpful to reduce the risks of developing the many metabolic complications of obesity and heart disease- which are much more serious than gout. \n Less meat, less fat and a lot of moderate exercise!!!!
1136658
yes medication helps gout, It helps the acute symptoms and it helps preventing relapses in the future.  Furthermore what you need is a list of foods to AVOID from your Doctor.
752207
Gout is a type of arthritis (inflammation of the joints) that mostly affects men age 40 and older. It is caused by chronic hyperuricemia--a long-lasting, abnormally high concentration of uric acid in the blood\n\nGout is classified as either primary (the most common type) or secondary, depending on the cause of the associated hyperuricemia. In both types of gout, between 70% to 95% of hyperuricemia cases are the result of underexcretion of uric acid, rather than uric acid overproduction\n\nCorticosteroids. The corticosteroids, known commonly as steroids, are used only when patients cannot tolerate other anti-inflammatory drugs or they are ineffective. They include triamcinolone (administered by injection) and prednisone (taken orally). Corticotropin (ACTH), a drug that converts to a steroid, is another option. Oral doses are usually given for seven to 10 days. A single injection is usually sufficient. If only one joint is affected, an injection may be administered directly to the site. Corticosteroids are sometimes followed by a rebound attack of gout after treatment is completed. To prevent this colchicine is given two or three times daily with the steroid and for several days after discontinuing it. They should only be administered for short periods and not used for long-term treatment
506747
The only remedy is to avoid getting it...keep your protein intake lower and your water intake very high. But, get to your doctor..there are very good meds for this. Gout is no laughing matter, can do a lot of tissue damage. Do not put off getting this taken care of. Good luck
462786
The crystal in urine can appear because of many factors, such as: over-saturated concentration of its parts, pH, crystallization inhibitors etc.\nThere are a lot of crystal types:\n1. of uric acid (in acid urine, it helps convert uric salts, soluble, in uric acid, insoluble); with a rhomboid shape, they could appear in patients with gout.\n2. of calcium phosphate or calcium oxide: the calcium oxide ones don't depend on the urine pH, meanwhile the calcium phosphate crystals grow in an alkaline urine. Risk factors: low ingest of liquids and calcium, high ingest of salt and proteins.\n3. crystals of magnesium phosphate: when the urine's pH increases, the solubility of the phosphate reduces