My name is Marilyn Baker, and I have horrible allergies. I’m 42 years old and have been suffering from allergies since I was a child. I have seasonal and environmental allergies. Allergies plague me year round. When I was young, my parents even moved to a dryer area in the hope of helping me. Over the past eight years, I have done extensive research both through doctors and online. I have managed to come up with some combinations that have helped me a great deal. My allergies aren’t gone, but they have become manageable. I do have to have allergy shots, but I also use some natural remedies. I am happy to be able to share my findings with you here on my blog. I hope you can find some of this of value.
Gout can wreak havoc on your life, causing serious pain and stiffness in your big toes, ankles, and even knees. If you've been diagnosed with gout, your podiatrist has likely prescribed a medication to regulate your uric acid levels. In order to keep your attacks to a minimum, however, you will also need to make a number of changes to your lifestyle. These include:
Keeping your weight in check.
Being overweight makes gout a lot worse. Not only does it increase the amount of uric acid in your bloodstream, causing more of it to crystallize in your joints, but carrying the excess weight puts more strain on your feet so the symptoms become more pronounced. If you are overweight, start cutting back on your food intake and slowly adding more exercise to your routine in order to slowly shed pounds. Low-impact exercises like swimming and water jogging are perfect for gout sufferers since they don't put a lot of strain on your joints, and they work a lot of muscles at once. If you're at a healthy weight, make sure you stay active and keep your calorie intake in check so that you don't gain weight.
Limiting meat and seafood.
Meat and seafood raise the levels of uric acid in the bloodstream, so you'll need to eat less of these foods. Try eating red meat and seafood only on special occasions. The rest of the time, stick to poultry or non-meat protein sources, like beans or tofu.
Limiting alcohol intake.
If you're a frequent drinker, that needs to change. Alcohol is one of the biggest aggravators of gout symptoms. If you're used to drinking beer or wine at dinnertime, switch to juice or milk. On special occasions, limit yourself to one drink – and then reach for sparkling grape juice or soda instead. If friends ask why you're not drinking, explain to them that if you do drink, you'll be in a lot of pain later. Remind yourself of this, too!
Check with your doctor before taking medications.
When you have a cold or headache, you probably just take an over-the-counter medication without giving it much thought. When you have gout, however, it is important to check with your doctor before taking any medication. So many medications, prescription and over-the-counter, can aggravate gout. Your doctor may recommend a different medication than the one you're used to taking to help you reduce your chances of a gout attack.
You don't have to live the rest of your life with painful, inflamed feet. Make the changes above and work with your podiatrist to keep your gout symptoms at bay.
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