Gout home remedies update

Gout-free Foot

Previously I blogged about my experiences with gout and different home remedies that I have tried. I am happy to report that avoiding foods with high levels of uric acid, eating foods high in malic acid, and taking a malic acid magnesium supplement has kept me gout-free for a year now. During the past year, I cut out canola oil and all poultry to make sure there was no canola in my diet.  I have also made eating one green apple (which are high in malic acid) a day a regular routine. These changes, combined with drinking alkaline bottled water to have a more neutral ph, has helped to dissolve and flush out the uric acid that caused my gout attacks.

Gout is caused by high levels of uric acid in the blood that forms crystals, usually in or near joints. Feet and hands are the most common place that the crystals form and in my case, they formed next to my big toe making walking nearly impossible. The long thin crystals act like needles and cut into the tissue and bone so that even touching the spot can cause intense pain. Since uric acid is not very soluble in water, it is hard to get the crystals to dissolve. Repeated attacks can cause long term damage to the joints and tissue.

Canola (Canada oil low acid) is oil from a genetically engineered rapeseed which has historically been considered inedible by humans due to its high percentage of uric acid. The seed oil is now touted as a health food and has become one of the most common oils used in foods while the remaining plant is used as animal feed for cows, chickens, and turkeys.

This week, I learned about some disturbing new findings about how fructose is turned into uric acid in the body. This information is surprising since I have never seen fructose on any list of foods to avoid if you have gout.

Researchers have defined a “metabolic syndrome” that precedes the onset of diabetes. This syndrome includes a resistance to insulin, a rise in triglycerides, an increase in blood pressure, and inflammation in the body. Disturbingly, fructose is being blamed for this syndrome because ingesting it causes a rise in uric acid levels which inflames the body.

Considering the wide spread use of high fructose corn syrup in our food and beverages, this finding has major implications in the fight against diabetes and obesity.  The feeling of fullness comes from the brain which is signaled by an insulin response (or a fiber response) , but our diet of low-fiber, high fructose burgers, burritos, pizza, breads, breakfast cereal, soft drinks, and sweets never tells our brain that we are full so we keep eating and eating.  Researchers like Dr Peter Havel, Dr. Richard Johnson, Dr. Joseph Mercoloa are claiming that  fructose, which doesn’t cause an insulin response, is the reason for the growing amount of obesity, and not high fiber carbohydrates and glucose which do cause an insulin response.

High-Fructose Corn Syrup, despite its name, is really the same as other sweeteners like table sugar (sucrose), honey, agave, and concentrated fruit juices. All contain glucose and fructose in roughly equal amounts. High-Fructose Corn Syrup contains about 55% fructose and 45% glucose and table sugar is 50% fructose and 50% glucose. Honey and Agave are about 70% fructose. So any widely available sugar that is eaten has the potential to turn into uric acid and cause or worsen a gout attack.

So now, I am reducing the sugar in my diet to help me stay gout-free.