What can cause Gout?

Not Medical Advice:

Gout is caused by too much uric acid in the blood which is called hyperuricemia. The exact cause of hyperuricemia isn't always known, though a person's genes likely play a role.

Uric acid may form crystals that build up in the joints which is the cause of the pain.

Although gout can flare up seemingly without a specific cause, some things that may trigger it include:

• • Eating lots of meat
  
• • Drinking too much alcohol
  
• • Regular use of aspirin
  
• • Diuretics
  
• • High Blood Pressure
  

Some foods that may be beneficial to sufferers of gout include:

• • Fresh fruits such as cherries, strawberries, blueberries, oranges, pineapple and bananas
  
• • Vegetables including green leafy vegetables, celery, tomatoes, cabbage and parsley
  
• • Water
  
• • Fruit juices
  
• • Vitamin C rich foods such as tangerines, red bell peppers, potatoes and red cabbage
  

Everyday Health offers 10 Steps to Ease a Gout Attack, Practical Pain Management provides their 5 Lifestyle Tips for Gout, and Arthritis Today offers more help on living Daily Life with gout.

In gout buzz, Daily RX is reporting that Gout Patients May Have Higher Diabetes Risk.