Have you ever felt sudden discomfort or severe pain in your joints, such as wrists, ankles, knees, and elbows? This sharp pain is called gout, which is a painful form of arthritis. It is commonly seen in men aged between 40-50 years. It can be a sign of a high level of uric acid in the blood.
What is uric acid?
Uric acid is a waste product created when the body breaks down the chemicals called purines. It gets dissolved in the blood and is filtered by kidneys that make it pass through urine. Taking drinks and food high in purines also increases the level of uric acid in your body. The foods may include seafood, red meat, alcohol, etc.
What uric acid does?
The excess uric acid that lingers due to disturbed biological cycles results in a condition called hyperuricemia. This hyperuricemia caused due to excessive uric acid forms sharp, needle-like crystals of uric acid. These crystals get accumulated in the joints, causing severe painful inflammation, gout.
These gout attacks can be recurring, which may lead to chronic gout attacks. It can further worsen the condition leading to erosion of cartilage and bones with severe deformities in toes, wrist, fingers, etc.
Moreover, if left untreated, it may cause permanent damage to bones, joints, and tissues. It can also lead to kidney and heart diseases.
What are the risk factors that increase the level of uric acid and cause gout?
You are likely to develop joint pain and gout if you have:
Obesity: If you are overweight, your body may have a hard time eliminating uric acid, which may increase the level of uric acid in your blood.
Diet- If you eat a meat-rich diet and drink a lot of sweetened beverages containing fructose, you are likely to have a high level of uric acid. Moreover, if you drink alcohol, especially beer, then you may develop gout.
Medical conditions: If you are already suffering from some medical conditions such as diabetes, metabolic syndrome, heart disease, and kidney diseases, you are at high risk of developing gout.
Family history: If your family members have had gout in the past, then you stand a chance of catching the disease.
Recent surgery or accident: Well, this is a little difficult to determine whether it is a gout attack or not if you have been through any surgery or accident. Still, there’s a high chance that you may develop gout if you have had a trauma recently.
What are the preventive measures you can take?
As you develop symptoms, there are specific dietary guidelines that you can follow. Apart from this, you can take specific measures such as:
- Stay hydrated, but don’t drink sweetened beverages that contain high fructose corn syrup.
- Limit your alcohol consumption to reduce the risk of gout. You can consult a doctor regarding this.
- Limit your consumption of meat and other poultry products instead take low-fat dairy products to consume proteins. It will protect you from developing gout.
- Maintain healthy body weight. Do it gradually and don’t indulge in fasting and rapid weight loss regimes as it may temporarily raise the level of uric acid in your blood.
Our Recommendations
You may find many medications and supplements that aid in joint pain. We will recommend you to try out Joint Support Supplement from Bael Wellness. It is 100% vegan and contains GMO plant-based ingredients such as Turmeric, Green Tea Extract, Flex Seed Extract, Black Pepper Extract, Ginger Extract & More. It helps to reduce joint pain and strengthen your joints further.
