Possible Gout Causes

What are the common gout causes?

Gout is a condition that is usually associated with old men, as more men than women suffer from gout, but in truth, it is something that can happen to anyone.

Gout is quite a painful condition and a major cause of gout is the build up of uric acid in the blood. The formation of too many uric acid crystals leads to inflammation and swelling in your joints, which can cause a lot of pain.

Gout may have a genetic element, as some studies suggest that around eighteen percent of sufferers have a family history of gout. Gout is often associated with other conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes. The condition generally affects older people and people in middle age.

What are other possible gout causes? Gout can also be the result of obesity and a bad diet. Some of the foods that we eat contain purines, which are chemical compounds already in our body cells and in certain foods. Some foods have a higher purine content than others, and it is these potential dietary gout causes that should be avoided.

One of the ways to prevent gout is to lower your intake of those foods which have high purine content, such as red meat and some dairy products - you need some purines because they convert our food to energy and our genes to protein, so they are vital to human beings.

As a general rule, once the purine has done its job and been broken down by the body, it is flushed through the kidneys in our urine. Sometimes, the level of purines in a person's body is too high for the kidneys to deal with efficiently, and it is this that causes the build up of uric acid crystals. When uric acid crystals enter the joints in a person's body, it results in the painful condition known as gout. This explains how high purine foods are potential gout causes.

When you choose to change your diet to include fewer foods that contain purine, then the levels of uric acid in the body are lowered, and this decreases the possibility that you might suffer from gout. On top of red meat, you should also eat less mackerel and other oily fish, and you should avoid alcohol, too.

Your diet should include more foods that are rich in vitamin c. You should drink plenty of water, as this aids the kidneys in flushing out uric acid. If you decide to opt for a holistic treatment of gout, then most practitioners would recommend that you drink plenty of pure water each day.

Purines, though, are not the only gout causes, and many doctors agree that a major factor is alcohol; beer in particular can bring on an attack of gout, as can white wine.

Although you should eat plenty of vegetables, you should avoid peas, cauliflower, mushrooms and spinach, as these can also be possible gout causes.

Some herbs can help to relieve gout, for example - ginger, nettles and burdock; unlike pain relieving drugs, there are rarely side effects when you use natural treatments.

If you think you are suffering from gout, then you may want to see your health care practitioner, who may recommend that you undergo some therapy along with any natural method you are already following.

Having read about the possible causes of gout, to learn more about gout remedies and treatments, read the other related gout articles and pages.

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