My first bout,brutal pain.

[cpt_majestic]

Well I'm about the same as everyone else, woke up Friday morning and thought my big toe was broken..Suffered through work Friday and went to doctor Saturday morning and he said it was Gout. His first question "How much beer do you drink".

I'm 42 years old and in good shape (run daily) and eat very good, not much red meat, but I love beer. :mad:

Used to drink a few a night during week and numerous on the weekends with friends, fishing golfing, etc...It looks like this is all in the past now, I'm assuming it was the beer since I don't break my food intake patterns too much.

He took blood tests and prescribed some meds for swelling and the such. I'm going back on Tuesday to review my results and talk to him more.

The pain was brutal, it's getting better now and I should be able to put a shoe on Tuesday morning for work (no laces)...

[Brett Thurston]

It's amazing how gout can impact even the very fit and healthy among us. It's pretty non-discriminatory really.

Are you aware that there is some evidence that gout may have a hereditary component to do with the ability to excrete uric acid. Do you know if any of your relatives have also had gout?

Ultimately it doesn't matter what the cause is though. Essentially the problem is the high uric acid levels, usually caused by the ingestion of foods high in purines.

Have you read up on the "gout foods to avoid"? The list is a lot more varied than you might think, and even some "healthy" foods are high in purines. (For example: peas, beans, cauliflower, spinach, mushrooms).

All the best
Brett