Gout is very special that you can "feel" it's attack before it arrives. Can we do something to prepare its arrival? How to prevent it from happening or to reduce the pain? Here is one of my experiences.
On night, while on the way home after attending a banquet, I felt that the Gout started attacking my left foot. Thanks for the the great food served on the table. Actually I just can do nothing as I did not have any pill at home. I just prayed that the attack would not be so severe. Nevertheless, I did the following that night before I went to sleep.
1. Drink a lot of water immediately.
2. Try to keep my foot as warm as possible by covering it with a blanket while sleeping.
3. Elevate my left foot using a pillow while sleeping.
Then hoped for the best to come. Fortunately, my left foot was in good condition in the next morning. I have tried this several times. And it seems to work most of the time.
Why did I do such 3 things?
1. Drink a lot of water.
Then hoped for the best to come. Fortunately, my left foot was in good condition in the next morning. I have tried this several times. And it seems to work most of the time.
Why did I do such 3 things?
1. Drink a lot of water.
It is never too late to drink water even you start feeling the gout attack. As mentioned in my previous post, drinking more water can help not only diluting the uric acrid concentration in blood but also discharging the purine inside the body. So I will drink water until I go to washroom for around 2 times before I go to sleep. But bear in mind that one should not drink more than 0.7L (24 ounces) per hour. Our kidneys cannot handle that much in a short period of time.
2. Try to keep my foot as warm as possible.
That is related to the gout attack formation process. Gout attack is actually an joint inflammation caused by needle-like urate crystals depositing in the joints. The crystal is formed when the uric acid concentration is so high that it reaches its saturation point. This saturation point is temperature dependent. The lower the temperature, the lower the saturation point. This is the reason why gout attack usually occurs at the extremities , especially the big toe. While sleeping, our body temperature is low and the extremities is even lower. Hence, the winter night is most favorable for gout attack. Therefore, to keep the foot warm while sleeping is important to prevent or improve the attack.
3. Elevating the foot using a pillow while sleeping
While keeping the foot warm is crucial, good blood circulation is also important. Elevating the foot should help the blood flow away from the extremities and reduce the chance of the crystal sticking into the joints. Most importantly, elevating the foot should reduce the swelling and the pain if the Gout attacks!
I hoped this experience can help the others. So, if you have any idea of how to prevent Gout attacks, please feel free to share.
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