Lets talk about Gout

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heylinb4nz

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#157125 20-Nov-2014 16:13

Perhaps one for the older boys here ? Im 38 and over the past 3 months I had a couple of incidents where my left knee swelled up after a couple of back to back social events. I put 2 and 2 together and the doctor confirmed 4 weeks ago that it was acute gout.
So I cut out the booze and went on a vegetarian diet for 3 weeks (was quite refreshing), now only having wine on weekends (no beer), little to no red meat and eating way more healthy (gout had subsided now).

Now apparently i'm told I have to be on this diet for the rest of my life....and eventually allopurinol (uric acid lowering drugs) by the time im 50

Im like WHAT !!!

Does your body just suddenly decide over 3 months that its going to give up processing uric acid as it usually did ? Anyone here had it (gout) what was your experience ? will the occasional steak and beer (once a fortnight) trigger an attack when 3 months ago I could drink 1/2 dozen and nail 2 steaks ?

I sometimes wonder if doctors just give blanket advice rather than dig a bit deeper into your history that may indicate a one\two off gout attack due to overlapping factors.

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#1180214 20-Nov-2014 16:26

Possibly it is life catching up on you. You have to remember that life expectancy used to be far lower, and we do wear out, and is all part of aging. At least it wasn't something more serious and is managable. BUt maybe you should get a second opinion, if you are not happy with the diagnosis. Doctors can be wrong, as they are just going on the info you give to them.

MikeB4

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#1180227 20-Nov-2014 17:07

Gout will come back and usually each recurrent flare is more intense. It can be very painful. You need to avoid where possible foods containing Purine, examples of these are Peas, Oily Fish, Liver, Kidney, Lamb, Pork. Also avoid High yeast like Beer, Ginger Beer and High yeast breads.
Remember drink plenty of water this helps remove the Uric acid and helps prevent Renal Stones.

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

heylinb4nz

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#1180229 20-Nov-2014 17:25

KiwiNZ: Gout will come back and usually each recurrent flare is more intense. It can be very painful. You need to avoid where possible foods containing Purine, examples of these are Peas, Oily Fish, Liver, Kidney, Lamb, Pork. Also avoid High yeast like Beer, Ginger Beer and High yeast breads.
Remember drink plenty of water this helps remove the Uric acid and helps prevent Renal Stones.

Yep, got all the diet stuff sussed and drink 2L of water during day, and chase every wine with a glass at dinner.

Thing is once the uric acid is removed from the blood and crystals out of joints, surely a sensible diet with the odd weekend of indulgence shouldnt bring gout back ? or does your body literally give up removing uric acid out ?

Is there any issue taking allopurinol combined with healthy weekly diet and leaving Weekends as a free for all (within reason).

nolanz

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#1180252 20-Nov-2014 17:41

Been there done that.

Given the choice between taking one little tablet daily, and enjoying a "normal" life, I am happy to have been symptom free and not having to try and figure out what the trigger were is a big bonus.

One of my worst trigger was cauliflower, but many "good" foods are included.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=51

khull

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#1180253 20-Nov-2014 17:46

My distant uncle has gout and we attribute that to being a rich person's disease (he is -with huge mansions) but I think the dietician can help to narrow it down (seafood/ alcohol etc) assuming it is food consumption related

scuwp

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#1180289 20-Nov-2014 18:55

Small price to pay for pain free and useable knees.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

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surfisup1000

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#1180309 20-Nov-2014 19:51

heylinb4nz: Perhaps one for the older boys here ? Im 38 and over the past 3 months I had a couple of incidents where my left knee swelled up after a couple of back to back social events. I put 2 and 2 together and the doctor confirmed 4 weeks ago that it was acute gout.
So I cut out the booze and went on a vegetarian diet for 3 weeks (was quite refreshing), now only having wine on weekends (no beer), little to no red meat and eating way more healthy (gout had subsided now).

Now apparently i'm told I have to be on this diet for the rest of my life....and eventually allopurinol (uric acid lowering drugs) by the time im 50

Im like WHAT !!!

Does your body just suddenly decide over 3 months that its going to give up processing uric acid as it usually did ? Anyone here had it (gout) what was your experience ? will the occasional steak and beer (once a fortnight) trigger an attack when 3 months ago I could drink 1/2 dozen and nail 2 steaks ?

I sometimes wonder if doctors just give blanket advice rather than dig a bit deeper into your history that may indicate a one\two off gout attack due to overlapping factors.

I had gout 3 times, spaced 1-1.5 years apart.

But, I've stopped getting it now, has been nearly 4 years since the last occassion. Not on any medication for it.

Can't figure out what caused it, I've not changed my lifestyle and i was reasonably fit and only 2 kg overweight (using BMI) at the time. I was thinking maybe red wine or fish, although I did not think I overindulged in either.

WWHeisenberg

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#1180310 20-Nov-2014 19:54

As you may already be aware your next attack of gout might be in a different location eg big toe, feet etc. I get a few attacks a year when I haven't managed my diet accordingly. I'm still learning all the time about different foods and how they affect me. As posted earlier foods such as cauliflower you will need to reduce/have only small amounts.

Since this is your first time and so long as you manage your diet (including drinking plenty of fluids - which can include coffee/tea etc ie does not need to be limited to water - although water is the best) you should be able to have the occasional indulgence.

One other very important thing that I have learned in the last year is to watch your sugar levels. I used to drink soft drink without thinking too much of it but now only in smaller quantities/frequency.

There are vitamins that you can take to help prevent gout - These are a couple which I currently take.

go-healthy-celery-8000-vegecapsules-60
radiance-tart-cherry-gouteze

These are only helping to delay what seems to be the inevitable which is going on Allopurinol.

As you can imagine there is plenty of info online about this topic.

Good luck.

Athlonite

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#1180326 20-Nov-2014 20:48

If you must drink any alcohol at all then drink Gin .. Red wine is just going to continue the cycle of gout

Dratsab

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#1180397 20-Nov-2014 21:28

I had a flare up in my foot a few months back which the doc suspected was gout. Turned out it wasn't and an xray revealed osteoarthritis. Didn't enjoy being off the Saturday morning liver/kidney breakfast fry-ups (done Thai style) while waiting for the test results.

rhy7s

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#1180496 21-Nov-2014 00:40

A handful of things to consider here.

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gchiu

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#1186572 1-Dec-2014 19:12

Very unusual for first presentation of gout to be knee swelling.
Needs confirmation with some fluid taken from your knee and examined under polarised light microscopy.
For most people, the reason they get gout is that their kidney function deteriorates with time, and they under excrete uric acid so that it accumulates in the body.

dipkiwi

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#1192781 10-Dec-2014 11:14

I recently have been experiencing some sharp pains in the knuckles of my right hand an hour or so after eating a decent meal. I was wondering if it was gout related. I had a uric acid blood test yesterday and it came out at 0.40 mmol/L. Reference range for the lab was 0.20 to 0.42, so I think mine is a bit on the high side. Reading this article here I am going to try severely limiting fruit and honey for the next couple of weeks (I already eat very little sugary products) and see if the discomfort subsides.

Worth a shot anyhow.

TLD

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#1193768 10-Dec-2014 11:31

'One for the older guys'? 'I'm 38'?

Now I feel 'really' old (I qualified for my Gold Card September just gone)

Trevor Dennis
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heylinb4nz

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#1194793 10-Dec-2014 12:32

dipkiwi: I recently have been experiencing some sharp pains in the knuckles of my right hand an hour or so after eating a decent meal. I was wondering if it was gout related. I had a uric acid blood test yesterday and it came out at 0.40 mmol/L. Reference range for the lab was 0.20 to 0.42, so I think mine is a bit on the high side. Reading this article here I am going to try severely limiting fruit and honey for the next couple of weeks (I already eat very little sugary products) and see if the discomfort subsides.

Worth a shot anyhow.

During a gout attack (ie you have the pain and swelling) your acid levels will be normal as the uric acid has crystalised out of your blood. Its during the non symptomatic time your true levels come to light, and why a simple meal of the wrong type of stuff will push you over and set off an attack.

For me I found cutting out all alcohol, drinking tons of water and not eating red meat for 2-3 weeks really helped. After that I started re-introducing things in moderation and will see how long I can stay attack free.

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