Post Christmas Gout

Christmas was great, we had our family at home and our little Granddaughter was in our house for Christmas morning it was great. Our Christmas dinner was Prime Rib with Twice Baked Potatoes. I thought for sure that I would have gout the day after Christmas because I had a generous share of Prime Rib, in most cases red meat will bring on a bad case of gout. I did take a few precautions, I drank a lot of water and made sure I was current on my medications. I don't know if that helped or if I was just lucky.
I am still having some trouble with my heart, the A-Fib is acting up. I'm treating it with a medication for the A-Fib and a medication for the rapid heart rate that comes with the A-Fib. A lot of the times when it is acting up I feel tired and just want to sit down until it goes away, but I think if I keep busy the symptoms won't be so bad, or noticeable.
Anyway I better run for now.

Still some gout in the foot but the A-Fib is acting up

Greetings all

Over the last several days my heart has been acting up. I have had A-Fib for as long as I can remember. I have had three Ablation procedures to try to correct the problem I have been on a number of medications to control the symptoms, and am currently on Sotalol Hydrochloride. In order to go on this drug you have to be hospitalized to make sure that your heart doesn't stop when they start you on it. This link will take you to webMD for more information on A-Fib, also here is a brief description of A-Fib as found on WebMD.com;

What Are the Symptoms of Atrial Fibrillation?
You may have atrial fibrillation without having any symptoms at all. If you have symptoms, they may include:
Heart palpitations (a sudden pounding, fluttering, or racing feeling in the chest).
Lack of energy; feeling over-tired.
Dizziness (feeling faint or light-headed).
Chest discomfort ( pain, pressure, or discomfort in the chest).
Shortness of breath (difficulty breathing during normal activities or even at rest).
What Causes Atrial Fibrillation?
Atrial fibrillation is associated with many conditions, including:
High blood pressure
Coronary artery disease (hardening of the heart arteries)
Heart valve disease
Having undergone heart surgery
Chronic lung disease
Heart failure
Cardiomyopathy (disease of heart muscle that causes heart failure)
Congenital (present at birth) heart disease
Pulmonary embolism (blood clot in lungs) I also had paracardiomites

In 1990's I was diagnosed with liver disease, after being on the transplant list for several years my symptoms were getting worse and one day I started having chest pain and discomfort and ended up in the hospital (again), the doctor decided to do an orthoscopey. While undergoing the procedure a visiting physician was observing between he and my regular cardiologist they determined that the pericardium sack was calcifying (turning to bone) and my symptoms that was attributed to liver disease were caused due to the constriction on the heart or pericarditis. So in 2003 I was scheduled to have the sack removed from my heart (pericardiomectomy).
Well now that's my story today. Check out the links to read more about the heart and some of the problems that can occur.

Kevin

As the cold symptoms leave the gout comes

Greetings all

Well my cold/flu is getting a little better, but yesterday I started to feel gout in my right foot right under the toes. (Did I mention that I hate gout!) Today it's bad enough that walking is painful and I prefer not to move. I haven't been eating anything that should cause the gout, my wife has been making several different kinds of soup. I think our recent sub zero weather has caused her to crave soup. That's OK, I like most of the ones she's made, however, the one I didn't like much was the "Best ever potato soup", it has about eight ounces of processed cheese. I made cheese in my younger years so I don't care for the processed cheese, it's not real cheese. In fact several of the ingredients remind me of the ingredients that are in Elmer's Glue. Well that's my story for today, and yes I am taking allopurinol and I have started taking Colchicine.

The gout is gone but the winter colds are here

Hello everyone:

Well the touch of gout that I had following my Thanksgiving binge has cleared up, however the flu and cold season is here. I know this because I have one or the other. My head is stuffed up I have a runny nose, achy body, and the worst thing is the sore throat. I've started with over the counter meds, and I also find that hot drinks help to relieve several symptoms, like the stuffy nose and sore throat. My drink of preference is Pero, it's a grain drink and if you add milk or cream with sugar it's a very soothing drink. Also, I have found that hot lemon and honey are excellent. My appetite has been affected but not enough to make me loose any weight.

With any of these home remedies and over the counter meds be careful not to use anything that may affect other problems like diabetes, or high blood pressure.

Please feel free to comment

Kevin

My Thanksgiving Feast

Well here it is several days after Thanksgiving and I have gout in my knee. It's not so bad I can't walk but it's bad enough that when I step wrong I know I utter a few choice words. It's funny how gout can enlarge your vocabulary.

I know what caused the gout this time. We bought a spiral cut ham and it was great. I think I ate one pound by myself. I have no will power!

Thanksgiving was great, not only did we have a good ham but the turkey mashed potatoes, rolls, salads, oh what a great day. I better stop or I'll be looking for some midnight snacks.

Well better run for now drop a line tell us about your experience with gout.

Kevin

Gout again

Today I have a little bit of gout in my ankle. It started yesterday and was painful to walk but not so bad that I had to just sit in the chair and do nothing. This morning I took colchacine and now the pain is going away. I just hope it stays away.

How is your gout? Let me know

Another day with gout

Greetings all

Today I've been in the house all day with gout in my toe. I can walk but I can't put on a shoe, so I have been watching the SYFY channel all day with a few excursions to the Internet and channel surfing. Anyway it's" The 31 Days of Halloween" so I have been watching Horror movies all day.

I did take extra cherry extract and colchicne. I can't be down with this too long, we are trying to finish a bathroom so I need to get the mud and taping done and move on to the next steps in the process.

Well another day with gout.

Leave us a note, tell us what's going on.

Interesting information about gout

Here is what gout is Gout is very painful and damages the joints it affects, follow the link for a definition of gout. There are many websites that talk about gout and there are hundreds if not thousands of companies that claim their product fixes or cures gout. Be careful when searching for gout relief.

Let me know what helps you with your gout.

Kevin

Greetings All

It's the beginning of October and I have a new story about gout. I had some blood work done the end of September and my uric acid level was great. The doctor started me on some medications, you know the Allopurinol and Colchicine combo, that's how my uric acid level got within normal range. Well I decided to test how well the drugs work. I called my sister and we met at Sizzler for dinner. I had the steak and endless shrimp dinner. Well I found out that the drugs aren't strong enough to overcome several servings of Sizzler shrimp, and I ended up with gout in my wrist. It hung around for several days making driving a little difficult, as well as other activities. You know you don't realize just how many activities require you to bend your wrist!
Well good luck with you battle against gout.

Kevin

just an update

Hello All
Just a short up date, my gout is on hold right now, I havfn't had it for several weeks now. My doctor has me on somer meds thatg seem to be helping, I still take the cherry extract everyday that helps keep my gout undercontrol. Let me know how you have been doing.

Till next time

Gout and the foods that you can eat

Greetings

In the last post I talked about foods to avoid when you have gout. That leaves the foods that you can enjoy and not impact your gout. Remember that foods with high levels of purines cause uric acid levels to increase. Some foods to avid are organ meats, Liver, Heart etc. Foods that have low levels of purines include many vegetables, some fish, and fruits, as well as whole grains.

My experience with food caused gout episodes is that any thing in excess may bring on an attack. There have been times when I was not over indulging in any one thing but I still got the gout. Other times when I had red meat (Prime Rib) and I didn't get gout at all. But when I over ate for a period of time, Like Thanksgiving, it was only a day or two and the gout set in.

Below is a list of foods to eat. Some of these foods will help prevent gout:

• Fresh cherries, strawberries, blueberries, and red-blue berries
• Bananas
• Celery
• Tomatoes
• Vegetables including kale, cabbage, parsley, green leafy vegetables
• Foods high in bromelain (Pineapple)
• Foods high in vitamin C (red cabbage,red bell peppers, tangerines, mandarins, oranges, potatoes)
• Drink fruit juices and purified water (8glasses of water per day)
• Low-fat dairy products
• Complex carbohydrates (breads, cereals, pasta, rice, as well aforementioned vegetables and fruits)
• Chocolate, cocoa
• Coffee, tea
• Carbonated beverages
• Essential fatty acids (tuna and salmon, flax seed, nuts, seeds)
• Tofu, although a legume and made from soybean, may be a better choice than meat
  
  

You can find this list and much more information at the link provided below.

Foods good for gout

I hope you find this information helpful, please feel free to add your comments, and follow this blog. Also check out the ads on the blog I have tried cherries and found then to be effective.

Gout and the foods to avoid

Greetings

In trying to avoid the onset of gout it's important that we learn about the foods that trigger a gout attack. So with this in mind I would like to talk about some of the foods that have brought on a gout for me.

On one occasion I worked right across the street from this great Japanese restaurant. They had several lunch box specials, (I recommend the Teriaki Salmon) that come with sushi as well as other flavorful items. One lunch time I was asked to join a friend for lunch, his treat. He ordered several sushi rolls and I tried every one of them, in fact I made somewhat of a pig of myself. The next day I had a sever case of gout that kept me out of work for several days. Now when it comes to sushi I still have some bur I only have a small amount, I love sushi.

On another occasion My wife and I had to make a trip out of town and we didn't expect to be home until late. So around dinner time we stopped at a steak house for dinner. We both love prime rib so naturally that's what we ordered. The next day I had another case of gout, not as bad as with the sushi but it still slowed me down for several days, and my productivity level at work suffered.

Because of these experiences and others I started to do some research on what foods cause gout below are some of the foods that you should avoid.

According to the American Medical Association, purine-containing foods include:

• Beer, other alcoholic beverages.
• Anchovies, sardines in oil, fish roes, herring.
• Yeast.
• Organ meat (liver, kidneys, sweetbreads)
• Legumes (dried beans, peas)
• Meat extracts, consomme, gravies.
• Mushrooms, spinach, asparagus, cauliflower.

For mor information on foods to avoid and foods that are OK see the web site listed below.

About.com

While your here take a look at the ads listed next to the blog.

Gout and the wonder drug Colchicine

Greetings

The last several times that I've had gout it was serious enough that I had to resort to pharmaceuticals (ie) Colchicine. Let me tell you how this occurred.
Back at the end of July I got the flu and it progressed into pneumonia. The doctor prescribed antibiotics, shortly after I started taking the antibiotics I got one of the worst cases of gout that I have ever had. I got it in both knee's, my right ankle, and my right toes. It even was in the left ankle but not too seriously.
After several day of suffering and not being able to get out of my easy chair, (not even to go to the bathroom) my leg was propped up with a pillow under my knee and ankle. On a Sunday I finally called a doctor, she was able to prescribe Colchicine. I started by taking two tablets in the morning and two tablets that evening, then one a day after that. After about 24 hours the pain and swelling started to go away. I still took my cherry juice extract, I believe that the cherries have prevented me from getting gout on several occasions. But when the gout is severe then I need to use Colchicine.
Colchicine has some very serious side effects and should be avoided or at least used with extreme caution in those who have;

• Kidney disease.
• Liver disease.
• Inflammatory Bowl disease.
• A low white blood cell count.

Again WebMd has a great deal of information on Colchicine as well as other medications used for gout.

Gout, Gout, I thought it was gone

The Gout Strikes again

Remember I said that I had been gout free for a while, well I spoke too soon. The very day after I posted that I got gout again.
It was very early Thursday morning, I felt it in my ankle and sure enough when I got up I started the day with a limp. So I took one Colchicine in the morning and one in the afternoon, I took two extra cherry extract, and by morning it was as good as gone. I tried to pinpoint what I ate but there was nothing out of the ordanary.
I don't remember if I have mentioned it but I have only one kidney, so I believe that a lot of my gout is due to poor kidney functiion.

Here are some links to web sites that you might find helpful.

Gout Diet

WebMd



How about you have you had gout latley, what do you think caused it, and how did you treat it?

Talk Later
Kevin

Gout Gout Gout be gone

I have been gout free for about 1 month now. I have been taking two supplements for my gout that I think are working. They are "Cherry Fruit Extract". It's distributed by "Enzymatic Therapy" These are capsules, I take two in the morning and two at night for my gout. I have just started taking "Dr. Cutler's Liver and Kidney Cleanse" this product is put out by "True Health". These are capsules and I take two in the morning and two at night also for my gout. Between the two I believe that the uric acid levels have dropped in my system. I'll find out in a few weeks, I have a blood work up scheduled. I'll fill you in on the results.

Happy blogging

Gout In My Elbow

Greetings all

I just wanted to talk a little bit about gout in the elbow. The first time I got it in my elbow it hit the right elbow. It started out about the same as it does in your toe, you know with that old familiar pain and the stiffness that accompanies the pain. I didn't do to much about it the first day or two but on the third day it was to the point that I couldn't stand the pain any more. Walking became hard every step jarred the elbow and when I would sit I'd have to rest my arm on a pillow in order to keep it from hanging at a VERY uncomfortable angle.

I finally had to go to the emergency room to take care of it. They performed the usual examinations and then the doctor came in with a syringe with a large needle. He said that he was going to remove some fluid from the joint to look for uric acid crystals under the microscope. Guess what, after he returned he told me that he was sure, I had gout. What amazed me was the next day the gout was almost completely gone. I learned something that day "the less fluid on the joint the faster your gout would clear up.

There are several things that I have found that help prevent and get rid of the gout. First is "Tart Cherries" there have been many times when I have felt the first twinges of gout and I started taking cherries and the gout went away by the next morning. Remember that it is the "Tart Cherries" that work. There are several web sits that offer the cherry products and health food stores have cherrie capsules that work very well. Check with the store clerks/owner for their recommended brands. Also there's a web site that has some very good information on gout, the diet that helps prevent gout, and the foods to avoid that cause gout. here's the website. www.webmd.com

That's all for now feel free to comment and tell us what works for you and what brings on your gout.

Kevin H.

I Got Gout

I Got Gout
This is a story of my experience with gout. It all started about seven years ago when I hit my mid 40’s. One day I woke up with this throbbing pain in my big toe. I thought for sure that I had broken it, but had no idea how. After about two days I decided to go to a foot doctor to have it checked out. The doctor asked about 3 questions performed a brief examination he then informed me I had gout. He said that he wanted to be sure so he ordered a blood test and sure enough it came back positive for high levels of uric acid. So begins my new life with my dear friend gout.
Over the next several weeks I learned about the gout diet, the super food that helps you avoid gout, and the large number of people I knew who have gout. I was surprised to find that many people I knew have had gout. Gout has a tendency to run in families, in fact my father, a brother and mother has all suffered with gout. What a pain – ha ha.
Gout, as many of you know is a form of arthritis caused by high levels of uric acid in the blood. This uric acid forms small crystals that deposit in the joints (Acts like sandpaper). The joint that is most favorite is the large joint in the big toe, however I have had gout in my knees, ankles, elbows, and wrist. Gout doesn’t care; it just gets in one of your joints, pitches a tent and camps for several days.
The pain associated with gout can be, and in many cases is the worst pain of any that is caused by arthritis. In fact I believe that it’s as bad as child birth and maybe worse in some cases. I believe this because with child birth the pain lasts for several hours and then you have a child to show for it, but with gout the pain can go on for days, even a bed sheet on your foot can cause excruciating pain. And when it’s finally gone you have nothing to show for it.
I have several other stories about my gout but I’ll save those for future articles. Anyway, what about you?
• Do you have gout?
• Do you know someone who has gout?
• Are there foods that work for you to prevent gout?
• Are there foods that you avoid that have caused gout in the past?
• What else helps?
Post you experience on this blog. Tell everyone about the pain how long it lasted, what helped, what didn’t and maybe between us we can prevent this wicked beast called gout from attacking us or someone we love. Or we can just whine and get it out of our system.
Best wishes
Kevin H.