How To Get Rid Of Gout Fast
Gout is a painful type of arthritis that feels similar to the pain experienced with rheumatoid arthritis, as both diseases cause inflammation in the joints.
Gout is caused by a buildup of uric acid in the blood.
When the body cannot get rid of the excess uric acid, that buildup ends up accumulating as crystals in a joint, such as the big toe.
This creates swelling, redness, warmth, and severe joint pain in the affected area.
This condition has historically been seen as a disease that only affects old, wealthy men.
About 4% of Americansmore than 8 million peoplesuffer from gout.
Since gout can be caused by genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors, anyone can get gouteven if they eat what would typically be deemed a healthy diet.
Attacks and flare-ups of the condition can be painful.
While there is no cure for gout, there are things you can do to get relief from the pain and inflammation.
In this article, Ill talk about ways to get fast relief from a gout attack, treatment options for these flare-ups, and warning signs that an attack may be coming.
Ill also tell you when its best to talk to your doctor or another healthcare provider about gout symptoms.
How Should This Medicine Be Used
Colchicine comes as a tablet and solution to take by mouth with or without food. When colchicine is used to prevent gout attacks or to treat FMF, it is usually taken once or twice a day. When colchicine is used to relieve the pain of a gout attack, one dose is usually taken at the first sign of pain and a second, smaller dose is usually taken one hour later. If you do not experience relief or have another attack within several days after treatment, talk to your doctor before taking additional doses of medication. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully, and ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any part you do not understand. Take colchicine exactly as directed. Do not take more or less of it or take it more often than prescribed by your doctor.
It is important to use an oral syringe to accurately measure the correct amount of liquid for each dose do not use a household spoon.
If you are taking colchicine to treat FMF, your doctor may start you on a low dose and gradually increase your dose. Your doctor may decrease your dose if you experience side effects.
Colchicine can prevent attacks of gout and control FMF only as long as you take the medication. Continue to take colchicine even if you feel well. Do not stop taking colchicine without talking to your doctor.
Try To Decrease Stress
A life without stress is impossible these days. There is no single method to avoid it unless you live in the wild. A natural treatment for gout can be to use methods that decrease stress. The best examples are exercising, yoga, meditation, reading, and anything that makes you happy.
But why stress affects gout? Stress decreases the production of pantothenic acid. When this acid is low, the uric acid level will be high and we all know what that means! Try to find a way to decrease stress at all cost.
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Cautions With Other Medicines
Certain medicines can interfere with the way colchicine works. Some can make you more likely to get serious or life-threatening side effects.
Speak to your doctor before starting on colchicine if you take:
- medicines that can affect your kidneys, your liver or your blood
- clarithromycin or erythromycin
- ritonavir or atazanavir
- ciclosporin
- ketoconazole, itraconazole or voriconazole
- verapamil or diltiazem
- disulfram
Your doctor may need to adjust your dose if you are taking any of these medicines.
Important Information About All Medicines
This medicine is for you. Never give it to other people even if their condition appears to be the same as yours. If you buy any medicines ‘over-the-counter’, always check with a pharmacist that they are suitable for you to take alongside your other medicines. If you are having an operation or any dental treatment, tell the person carrying out the treatment which medicines you are taking. Do not keep out-of-date or unwanted medicines. Take them to your local pharmacy which will dispose of them for you. If you have any questions about this medicine ask your pharmacist. |
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Home Care For A Gout Flare
If your doctor has diagnosed you with gout and given you medicine for a flare-up, take the medicine as directed when you know youâre having one. In most cases, that will probably be as soon as the first signs begin.
Your doctor may prescribe nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as celecoxib, indomethacin, meloxicam, or sulindac or suggest you take over-the-counter NSAIDs, like naproxen or ibuprofen. Depending on your medical history, your doctor may prescribe steroids or other medicines to reduce inflammation, such as colchicine .
In some cases, you already may be taking medicine like colchicine to prevent gout flare-ups. Your doctor may have also suggested:
If you canât take allopurinol or it is not effective, your doctor may prescribe . It should be used with caution, however, because it has been linked to increased risk of death from heart disease and from other causes.
Just because you have a flare doesn’t mean these medicines aren’t working. In the first few months that you take them, you may have an attack as your body adjusts to the drug. Your doctor will likely have given you something to take if this happens, too.
If youâve been taking preventive gout medicine for a long time and youâre having flares for the first time in a while, call your doctor. They may talk to you about changing your dosage or your medicine.
Take Caution With Supplements For Gout
As for the many supplements and other purported home remedies available for gout, including turmeric and bromelain, there is no significant evidence backing them up as of now, and theres no adequate evidence showing that supplements have any effect even comparable to that of medicines.
From my point of view, says Dr. Fields, the home remedy concept to gout is often harmful because it keeps patients from taking medications that we know are effective.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Gout
If you think you are suffering from gout, how can you be sure? One of the tell-tale signs of gout is excruciating swelling and pain in the big toe, usually resultant of an injury. Gout may affect other joints intermittently, though, most often it affects the joints in the foot and knee. If left untreated, gout can become a chronic condition.
If you do not treat gout symptoms, your body may produce something called tophi which are little crystals that form disfiguring lumps near your joints and can also produce painful kidney stones.
Why Is This Medication Prescribed
Colchicine is used to prevent gout attacks in adults. Colchicine is also used to relieve the pain of gout attacks when they occur. Colchicine is also used to treat familial Mediterranean fever in adults and children 4 years of age and older. Colchicine is not a pain reliever and cannot be used to treat pain that is not caused by gout or FMF. Colchicine is in a class of medications called anti-gout agents. It works by stopping the natural processes that cause swelling and other symptoms of gout and FMF.
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How Will Gout Affect Me
Attacks can vary from person to person. Some people only have an attack every few years, while others have attacks every few months.
Without medication attacks tend to happen more often and other joints can become affected.
Having high urate levels and gout for a long time can lead to other health problems, including:
- narrowing of the arteries – which can lead to an increased risk of stroke or heart attacks or other heart problems
- osteoarthritis, which occurs when the urate crystals and hard tophi cause joint damage.
- an increased risk of developing kidney disease or worsening of the condition if you already have it
- kidney stones
- an increased risk of some cancers, especially prostate cancer
- mental health problems, including depression
- underactive thyroid
- erectile dysfunction in men.
If you take medication to lower your urate levels, and have a healthy diet and lifestyle, most of the damage and complications caused by gout can be stopped.
Treatments for gout are incredibly successful. There are two main parts to treating gout, which are:
- treating the acute attack
- treatments to prevent future attacks.
Home Remedies For Gout
Because of the rise in health care costs and the popular inclination to try natural home remedies to prevent the need for prescription drugs and surgeries, many people are turning toward alternative remedies to treat gout. A number of these home remedies have been acknowledged for treating gout. But, are they effective or not? We will present a number of them below and discuss their likelihood of success.
1. Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is used to treat gout because its acidity relieves the acute pain associated with gout and other types of arthritis. The vinegar increases the bodys alkalinity and has anti-inflammatory properties. Some individuals also add honey to the apple cider vinegar because of honeys anti-inflammatory properties.
The bad news is that you take the concoction by the spoonful, and apple cider vinegar isnt exactly known for its amazing taste. To be most effective, you need to take up to two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar three times a day. Scientific results are lacking in evidence that apple cider vinegar really works. There was a study in Japan in 2010 which looked at different diets to improve alkalization of urine to increase the removal of uric acid from the body. Apple cider vinegar was in one of the diets, but was not tested alone.
Success stories are hit or miss with apple cider vinegar and the treatment of gout. We give it two stars.
2. Ginger Root
3. Baking Soda
4. Lemon Juice
5. Epsom Salt
6. Cherries
7. Bananas
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Drink Plenty Of Water
This wont likely provide immediate relief, but inadequate hydration is known to contribute towards the creation of urate crystals.
Drinking water may flush uric acid crystals out of your system.
Preliminary research suggests that adequate water consumption during the 24-hour period before a gout flare can decrease recurrent gout attacks.
How To Handle Your First Gout Attack
After a first attack of gout, its OK to try to stave off another one with dietary changes alone. But if you have another attack, its important to start taking preventive gout medications on a regular basis. Long-term medications for gout include allopurinol and febuxostat, both of which limit uric acid production.
Some patients, says Dr. Fields, treat each attack as a separate event and dont talk to their doctors about doing a preventive approach. He uses the analogy of lighting a book of matches. If you have one match lit, its easy to put out, but if you have the whole book lit, its a lot harder.
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Pain Relief Without Medicine
Use cold. If your pain isn’t too bad, try cold packs or compresses on the joint to lower inflammation and soothe the ache. Wrap ice in a thin towel and apply it to the joint for up to 20 minutes several times a day. Do not apply ice to your hands or feet if you have nerve problems from diabetes or other causes.
Rest the joint. It’s a good idea to rest it until the pain eases up. You probably won’t want to move it much anyway. If you can, raise the joint on a pillow or other soft object.
Drink water. When your body doesnât have enough water, your uric acid levels rise even higher. Stay hydrated to help keep those levels normal.
Watch what you eat and drink. Foods that are high in substances called purines, such as some seafood, organ meats like liver, and fatty foods, can raise the uric acid in your blood even more. So can fructose-sweetened drinks and alcohol — especially beer.
Warm Water With Apple Cider Vinegar Lemon Juice And Turmeric
Apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and turmeric are each frequently recommended anecdotally for gout. Together, they make a pleasant beverage and remedy.
No strong research supports apple cider vinegar for gout, though studies show it may support the kidneys. Otherwise, research is promising for lemon juice and turmeric for lowering uric acid.
Mix juice from one squeezed half lemon into warm water. Combine with 2 teaspoons turmeric and 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar. Adjust to taste. Drink two to three times per day.
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Who Can And Can’t Take Colchicine
Colchicine can be taken by most adults aged 18 and over.
It can sometimes be prescribed for children by a specialist doctor.
Colchicine is not suitable for some people. To make sure it’s safe for you, tell your doctor if you:
- have ever had an allergic reaction to colchicine or any other medicines
- have a severe blood disorder
- have severe kidney or liver problems
- have problems with your heart or digestive system
- are pregnant, think you might be pregnant or are trying for a baby
Women who could become pregnant will usually only be prescribed colchicine if they are using suitable contraception.
Who Is At The Risk Of Developing Gout
Anyone can suffer from gout. However, the condition occurs early in men as compared to women. It tends to affect women after menopause, making men over three times more likely to suffer from this inflammatory condition.
In addition to this, people are at a very high risk of developing gout if they have either one or more underlying medication conditions, such as
- Tenderness
- Stiffness and
- Warmth
On average, the gout attack would last for about two weeks or more, depending on the severity of the condition. Surprisingly, in-between the flares one may not have any symptoms.
After youve had your first gout attack, you might experience the subsequent episode of gout frequently. However, if not treated using effective gout medicine, the pain and inflammation will last longer and become even more frequent.
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Hot And Cold Application
One of the simple home remedies for gout is the oldest and something you probably have been using for years. You will want to try applying hot or cold towels to the affected joint. Keep the towel or ice for 10-15 minutes and you should notice improvement. Ice works better for most patients while a hot towel works for some. Elevate your joint to force blood return to the heart which decreases inflammation even faster.
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Who Can Take Allopurinol
Allopurinol is often recommended as the first choice of treatment to control gout. If your doctor prescribes it as soon as you are diagnosed, it may prevent future attacks and joint damage.
You will usually be offered allopurinol if blood tests show that your urate level is high enough for urate crystals to form, especially if one or more of the following applies:
- you are having frequent attacks of gout.
- your joints have been damaged by gout.
- your skin has visible deposits of urate crystals. These are firm white lumps, which are called tophi.
You may not be offered allopurinol, or you may be given a lower dose, if you:
- have ever had an allergic reaction to allopurinol.
- are currently having an attack of gout.
- have problems with your liver or kidneys.
- are of Han Chinese, Thai or Korean origin.
- have thyroid problems.
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Risk Factors For Gout And Diabetes
Many of the same things can make your chances of having gout or diabetes go up. You may be more likely to get them if you:
- Are overweight or obese. If you carry extra fat on your body, youâre more likely to have both gout and type 2 diabetes.
- Drink too much alcohol. Moderate amounts of alcohol — one drink a day for women and men over 65 and two for men 65 and younger — may actually lower your chances of getting diabetes. But too much can affect how your pancreas releases insulin, which can lead to type 2 diabetes. More than two drinks a day can also up your odds of gout.
- Have a family history of them. If one of your family members has had gout or diabetes, youâre more likely to get these diseases, too.
- Have other health problems. High cholesterol and high blood pressure are linked to both conditions.
Practice Mindfulness And Meditation
The good news: A gout attack is self-limited and will clear in time. In the meantime, according to the Arthritis Foundation, meditation, yoga breathing, mindfulness, and guided imagery can help you deal with the pain.
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What Can Increase Your Risk
A high level of uric acid in the blood is the main factor that increases your risk of developing gout. However, it’s still uncertain why some people with a high level of uric acid in the blood develop gout, while others with an equally high level don’t.
Other factors that may increase your risk of developing gout are outlined below.