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Hello all gout suffers,
I’ve been reading here for a while now and not posting anything. I’m still trying to find my way around, and there’s so much information that it’s difficult to take in. First off, I am a 60-year-old female, just turned 60 last month, overweight and trying to lose weight now.? I have a previous hip injury that keeps me from walking like I used to for exercise.? Please allow me to explain my gout experience.
About a year and a half ago, I tripped over my elderly cat in my kitchen. It was during the summertime. My feeling was that I was going to bang my knees on the floor, so I put my hands out to catch myself, which I did, but I did bang my left knee a little bit.? Then afraid that I would end up hurting my kitty, too, which I didn’t.? So as I grabbed my left knee after that,? I fell back on my right foot, sitting on it with it twisted up.? I finally pulled it out in front of me, not sure which to hold first, my left knee or my right foot.? At that time, the foot hurt a little bit, but it wasn’t too bad.
However, sometime during the night, I woke up in severe pain from my right foot.? I thought that I had broken it.? Couldn’t stand for the sheet to touch it, and couldn’t put any pressure on it.? The worst place was by my big toe, on the huge bone. It was red and swollen. But it took me several days to realize that, hey, do I have gout? This lasted about ten days where it was extremely painful, and I couldn’t wear shoes on it. Didn’t go to the doctor because we don’t have insurance.
Well, that ran its course for about ten days, then in mid-Dec. of this year,? I was getting out of our truck,and strained that same foot a little bit. I’m short, and the truck is big.? It was messed up again, although not as bad as before. But after my foot stopped hurting, then it started in my right knee. In Feb., I went to the doctor and had a uric acid test done. My UA was 7.2. The doctor said it was gout.? He gave me a prescription of allopurinol, but he did say, you may want to try to diet first, but here’s the medicine just in case.
Well, I had been on a diet to try to lose weight. It’s not coming off very fast yet. Then because I can’t walk like I used to, my husband bought me an elliptical for my b-day.? It is one thing that I can do because I don’t have all of that impact on my hip and joints.? I’m embarrassed to say my weight, but my height is 5 foot 2 1/2 inches.
Why do I have gout? The answer might be genetics. My maternal grandmother, who passed away a year before I was born, was diabetic and had gout as well. That’s what I do remember people in the family saying. Unfortunately there is no one to ask about that now.
Anyway, at the doctor’s office, my test value was at 7.2.? About two weeks, I had started feeling worse, hurting all over. Last week was really bad. There wasn’t a place on me that didn’t hurt. I couldn’t figure out what was going on.? We had just had our uric acid test meter come in the mail.? It’s the Easy Touch. So we tested my UA, and it was at 8.2.
I can’t figure out why it got so much higher. The only thing is that during Passover week (we keep Passover), I had cooked a pot of pinto beans with turkey sausage. We had that for dinner a couple of nights, and I had taken 3 Beano before I ate. I always take three when I have a meal like that.? A couple of days ago, I started thinking that, hey, what’s in that Beano?? So I looked at the ingredients, and it has three kinds of fish: cod, flounder and redfish.? But I’m not sure that this triggered a worse attack, or maybe it was the pinto beans?
Could it be that my diet is dislodging some of those crystals? I’ve been trying to eat foods that are gout-lowering. Like organic tart cherry juice, nonfat milk, making the gout-lowering soup that’s on here, eating oranges.? Eating less meat. Some days I eat no meat at all.? Maybe it was that Beano.
But we tested my UA just a little while ago, and it was back to 7.2 again. I have the Purixa stuff on order now and should be getting it in a few days. I’ll let you guys know if it works at all. I have the allopurinol filled, but I’m not sure about it yet.
Anyway, thanks for listening to me. I wish that I could find out about the Beano, but maybe no one has experienced it yet.
When we first get gout, we try to find all kinds of links and triggers that might explain it. The true explanation is very simple. Your body has too much uric acid.
This is usually genetic, but there might be environmental factors. It is always a good idea to avoid excess calories, and exposure to lead, iron, or similar contaminants. As you have gout in the family, it is almost certainly genetic. Carrying excess weight is likely to make gout slightly worse. Losing that weight is an excellent plan to reduce your risk of heart disease and other health problems. It may also reduce your uric acid slightly, but it is not likely to get it down to 5, where it needs to be.
I’ll have to hope that someone else can comment on Beano. I’m a limey, and it means something completely different over here.
Generally speaking, for gout, the things to avoid are excess iron, excess calories, and excess animal flesh. If Beano is high in any of those, then restrict it to the occasional treat, otherwise just enjoy your food. There are few specific foods that you should avoid, but total food intake that leads to excess calories, excess iron, or excess animal purines are definitely foods to avoid with gout.
I’ll join your other thread to discuss PURIXA.
On the uric acid testing, you might find fluctuations in your results. Some of this is down to natural daily fluctuations. You can minimize that effect by always testing at the same time, e.g. before breakfast.
Oh, Keith, I forget that you’re a limey:)? And I love it over there.? Only been there once to London for a 22-hour layover from the Middle East years ago.? I had always wished that we had time to go to the British Museum, but we would have need two weeks to property see it.? Also wanted to see the countryside.
Beano is what a person can take before they eat a meal that causes gas and discomfort. It’s like a digestive aid.
That’s the trouble with London – never enough time to see everything you want, but I guess that’s true of any capital city.
I’m guessing that Beano is irrelevant for gout, but that depends on what is in it. Best talk to your doctor about it. It does not seem right to me that you have to take something just to allow you to eat properly, but as I’ve said many times – I do not have the medical qualification to make a valid contribution.
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