Treat Gout Naturally

Gout: what and who: When uric acid builds up in the joints, you've got gout: painful inflammation, redness, sometimes swelling. Your big toe often suffers the most...

...and 90% of those who suffer are men--although this inflammatory condition is more common in women after menopause.

Other pertinent information: Appears to be hereditary, since 20% of those who suffer from it have a family history of it. Occurs most often at night, and can be quite acute.

Leave it alone, and the pain typically lasts anywhere from 5-10 days, gradually subsiding until it disappears. That's because your body slowly rids itself of built-up uric acid...

...but the underlying cause is still there. Conventional Western medicine recommends using anti-inflammatory drugs for the pain, and uric-acid-lowering drugs for prevention. Read on for herbal remedies and natural treatments.

Natural Remedies

This foot pain responds to many different natural remedies--supplements, herbs and lifestyle choices. Lots of options for you!

Several herbal remedies are recommended highly:

• Quercetin--a naturally occurring plant pigment, found in apples, capers, broccoli and other leafy vegetables. Preventative, because its flavonoid structure stops the build-up of uric acid.
• Devil's Claw--extracted from the grapple plant, is sometimes recommended for pain relief of gout, as well as arthritis.

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• Vitamin C--proven by a number of scientific tests to significantly reduce uric acid levels, and therefore the onset this condition. Amount to take: 500mg daily.
• Liquids--increasing your daily intake of water is also highly recommended; it reduces that troublesome uric acid. You may also consider reducing your intake of alcohol and caffeine, for the same reason.
• Diet--recommendation here is down with sugar derivatives like sucrose and fructose, and up with high purine foods like shellfish, oily fish, red meat and poultry.
• Celery--anecdotal evidence from medicinal plant authority and botanist, James Duke, PhD, points to celery as a powerful anti-inflammatory. He treats his gout with four 450mg capsules of celery seed extract daily, and states that he hasn't had an attack since he began the treatment!
• Cherries, on the other hand, are well known as preventative for this condition. Any type--black, sweet yellow or red sour--of cherries is effective, as are tablets of concentrated cherry juice.

A study done in the 1950's revealed that eating one-half pound of cherries a day prevented the onset of gout!

• Folate--best known for preventing anemia during pregnancy, folate is also recommended here. Find it naturally in foods and as a daily supplement.
• Olive Leaf--not only good for preventing the common cold, olive leaf is recommended for just such an inflammation as this.

I hope you find some relief with the above ideas. Best health to you~~

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