Gout is a type of acute arthritis that usually affects the big toe and leads to intense pain and swellings in the joints. It can also affect other parts of the limbs, such as the knees, wrists, elbows, and ankles.
According to Dr.Mercola:
“Gout is a type of arthritis characterized by painful, stiff and inflamed joints. The stiffness and swelling are a result of excess uric acid forming crystals in your joints, and the pain associated with this disease is caused by your body’s inflammatory response to the crystals.
Gout is essentially a breakdown of the metabolic process that controls the amount of uric acid in your blood. Gout can occur in any joint of your body, but most commonly occurs in your big toe.
With or without treatment, gout symptoms will usually go away within three to 10 days, and the next attack may not occur for months, or even years, if at all. Nonetheless, if more attacks occur, they tend to increase in frequency, become more severe, and last longer. Over time, recurrent gout attacks can damage your joints and the surrounding areas.”
Uric acid is created when the body breaks down waste products from foods that contain purine, a colorless crystalline compound. A healthy body eliminates uric acid from the blood through the urine, but if the function of the kidney is impaired, or there is an overload of uric acid in the body, it can build up and crystallize in the joints.
Foods rich in purine include flour, sugar products, meat products especially organ meats, peas, seafood, peanuts, and lentils. You should also avoid tobacco, caffeine, and alcohol.
The following juice recipes will be of great help in relieving pain due to gout, as they improve the function of the kidneys, and prevent oxidation and formation of uric acid crystals. Just mix the ingredients, and you will get delicious, healthy beverages:
1. Bitter Gourd Fights Gout Inflammation
Ingredients:
¼ small bitter gourd
¼ lemon with peel
1 green apple
6 ribs celery
1 small or ½ a large cucumber
Thumb-sized ginger root
Bitter gourd juice cleanses the liver, boosts blood circulation, soothes pain, and detoxifies the blood.
2. Juice To Reduce Uric Acid Crystallization
Ingredients:
8-10 ribs of celery
1 cucumber
1-inch fresh ginger root
1 green apple
A squeeze of lemon juice
The presence of gingerol and the powerful antioxidant properties of ginger soothe pain, reduce swelling, and relieve various inflammatory disorders like gout, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
3. Pain-Reducing Pineapple Juice
Ingredients:
½ small pineapple
½ inch ginger
1 small cucumber
1 lime
Bromelain in the pineapple juice soothes pain in a natural way.