Gout

I've worked for a podiatrist for years and diet is the key. Alcohol, red meat and shell fish are the most that cause flare ups. If you stay away from these foods for awhile you will notice your uric acid level will decrease and that's what causes crystals to form in the joint. It's painful and I hope he finds relief soon. You can google gout to learn more and understand why it develops.

Hi Donna! There appears to be some disagreement among professionals now concerning gout. My doctor believes there are other factors but TG we have not had a major problem, although an uncle of mine had chronic, severe issues. Do google, OP, but DH really should see an MD or Podiatrist soon, at least for blood work. There are types of gout that are caused by other things making crystals in the blood I think.

My mother has this -- poor thing! It is very, very painful! She has a long list of foods, drinks, etc., which she is supposed to avoid. It is very limiting. She goes through spells where she is not exceptionally bothered, and other times, where she is in terrible pain. Getting proper care and advice from a doctor is crucial. Best of luck and I hope you find some relief.

I have gout, and my flare ups seem to have no rhyme or reason. I'm allergic to shellfish, so I most certainly don't eat that, lol. I don't eat a lot of red meat - just a couple servings of it a week. And I mean truly measured 3-4 ounce servings. I'm diabetic following a certain eating plan for that - I eat protein, but not in large portions at a time since the live can convert that into glucose as well...

but anyway, I only drink alcohol rarely - as in once or twice a year during the holidays. I've had flare ups when I've been 100% "good" on my eating plan for a long time. And they have happened when I've been not-so good.

One totally weird thing that I tried was taking baking soda. I was totally desperate during a flare a couple years ago. I was convinced that my toe was trying to assassinate me in my sleep. Oh man, who woulda thunk that such tiny little crystals in a tiny little joint in a funny little part of the body could hurt SO much?! I found some gout forums and people talking about baking soda, so I started taking that. Now it might be coincidence, but the flare did go away, and it didn't come back for as long as I took it.

I do sometimes wonder if there is a connection between my gout and my sons kidney stones. I'm not a doctor or a scientist, but to me it just seems very weird that we both have conditions directly related to uric acid crystals. He was only 19 when he first started getting the stones. I've already warned him about the gout so he'll know what it is if/when he gets his first attack. The first time it happened to me, I thought a wasp got in to my bed and stung my toe. I spent a long time looking for the non-existent wasp before I learned what was really going on with my toe. especially when I got stung again, and again...

Unfortunately, my blood pressure didn't like me taking all that baking soda. Some things just aren't fair. I wish I had an answer. I think there are some of us that don't fit into the mold.

On 9/2/2014 qualitygal said:

Hubbie now and then has a flare-up and it's painful in the big toe. We've used cherry juice, the real stuff, and stayed away from shrimp. He now thinks beef and whole wheat bread might be bad too. He once had pills for it, but other pills prevented those again. Anyone have to watch what they eat to help combat this? Maybe we're missing something. We keep trying to see what he is eating that could make it flare up. Thanks for any ideas.

Gout can be caused easily if one uses a Blood Pressure prescription that is a diuretic. Generally raises the Uric Acid levels which can lead to gout. Every guy I worked with that was on BP meds ended up experiencing gout at some point.

Getting more potassium rich foods sometimes helps for many that experience gout. Some have to go through a process of elimination of foods to find the aggravating one(s). With many they do not drink enough H2o.

If he is sure his potassium level is not low/he is drinking enough H2o and his Uric Acid level is not high, I think the process of elimination would be what I would try were I in that situation.

Stress makes mine flare along with eating ham and red meat.....drinking water helps along with bananas, OJ, dried cherries ......... And losing weight has helped with a veggie weighted diet and limited fats.......

On 9/2/2014 hckynut said:

On 9/2/2014 qualitygal said:

Hubbie now and then has a flare-up and it's painful in the big toe. We've used cherry juice, the real stuff, and stayed away from shrimp. He now thinks beef and whole wheat bread might be bad too. He once had pills for it, but other pills prevented those again. Anyone have to watch what they eat to help combat this? Maybe we're missing something. We keep trying to see what he is eating that could make it flare up. Thanks for any ideas.

Gout can be caused easily if one uses a Blood Pressure prescription that is a diuretic. Generally raises the Uric Acid levels which can lead to gout. Every guy I worked with that was on BP meds ended up experiencing gout at some point.

Getting more potassium rich foods sometimes helps for many that experience gout. Some have to go through a process of elimination of foods to find the aggravating one(s). With many they do not drink enough H2o.

If he is sure his potassium level is not low/he is drinking enough H2o and his Uric Acid level is not high, I think the process of elimination would be what I would try were I in that situation.

Yes, he's on BP meds, and he had had some beef, and now he'll be more careful of OJ. He's going to try more low fat too. I've tried that for years, and he didn't want to listen, guess gout speaks right to him!!! Thanks to all, will keep all this in mind. And he does a banana daily and tries to drink a good amount of water. Thanks again all.

My DH has gout and he has chosen to control it with diet. He can't have beef of any kind. I had corned beef and cabbage, and potato lover that he is, he had to have a bite of mine. He thought he was gonna die the next day! On the other hand, gout sufferers are told to limit turkey, but he can eat it with abandon. I am always researching gout because I don't want him to suffer, but this is a potentially crippling disease. We discovered Portobello mushrooms cause flares, and that's bad news because it is used in a lot of soup bases as a substitute for beef. In a number of publications that I have read, whole grains are encouraged, but with some of the research that has come out, wheat is a possible cause of inflammation....beer and brewers yeast are big no nos. All your DH can do is keep a food journal and log his reactions, keeping in mind that some reactions occur the day after you've had an offending food. Colchicine and Indomethicin are not optional, and they are nasty drugs for the GI and intestinal tract. There is a new drug that's out (I wish I could remember the name) that can be taken anytime and does not have the horrible side effects, but he can't take that either because it's not on the FAA approved drug list. He will not give up flying-but it sure would be nice to have a wider variety of food.... Poodlepet

Thank you all.

Poodlepet, he had baked potato and mushrooms, and I copied out one of the latest things on line. Turns out those two things are ok but only in 7 days time. He had both for one meal. He'd had some ham and all the bells and whistles went off for that one! Live and learn. Yes, there's not a whole lot, but it can be controlled better with the right foods. No fun to find out the hard way!! Thanks again to all of you! Appreciate it.