Top 14 Effective Home Remedies For Gout

Gout can be an extremely uncomfortable and painful ordeal for the person affected. And while medical advice is THE best path to follow, there are certain things that you can do at home to help your body heal. Read on to know how.

Gout is a condition characterized by lumpy deposits of uric acid within the body. When the kidneys cannot excrete excess uric acid, it results in the formation of these deposits, which can be excruciatingly painful (1). It is mostly men who get affected by this arthritic condition, and the most vulnerable age is after 40 years.

The below-mentioned points, apart from the regular intake of your prescription meds, can help you to reduce the instance of gout and if affected, can alleviate the discomfort. I’ve listed 15 effective home remedies for gout pain that many claim have helped them deal with gout and the soreness it brings with it.

Let us firstly understand the condition better and then delve into the remedies.

What Are The Types Of Gout?

This ailment is of four types, wherein, these types are also regarded as the four stages of gout.

• Asymptomatic Hyperuricemia – There are elevated levels of uric acid in the blood but no other symptoms in this stage.
• Acute Gout – The uric acid starts to deposit in the body’s joints causing swelling, pain, and tenderness. The gout attack usually starts at night and lasts for 3-10 days.
• Interval Gout – This phase is in between the acute gout attacks when the patient has no symptoms.
• Chronic Tophaceous Gout – With prolonged accumulation of uric acid, permanent damage is caused to the joints. Gout arthritis in this stage is very painful, but it is very rare that people progress to this stage (1).

Let us now look at the various causes of gout.

What Are The Causes Of Gout?

Gout does not have specific causes but many factors increase the risk of developing this painful disease. These risk factors are given below –

• Genetics – A family history of gout increases your chances of developing it
• Age And Gender – Older men are more prone to getting gout
• Weight – If you are overweight, the chances of you developing gout are higher
• Diet – Eating food that is high in purine content like beef kidneys, liver, herring, mushrooms, scallops, asparagus, anchovies, etc. can increase chances of gout attacks
• Alcohol Consumption – Too much alcohol affects the body’s mechanism to eliminate uric acid
• Exposure to lead
• Health issues such as hypothyroidism, high BP, Kelley-Seegmiller syndrome or Lesch-Nyhan syndrome can increase chances of developing gout
• Certain medications like diuretics, cyclosporine, niacin, etc. are also risk factors for gout (1, 2).

Here are the home remedies that can help you to treat the symptoms of gout and give you some comfort.

Home Remedies For Gout

1. Apple Cider Vinegar
2. Cherries
3. Baking Soda
4. Celery Seed
5. Epsom Salt
6. Papaya
7. Ginger
8. Kale
9. Kombucha
10. Lemon Juice
11. Olive Oil
12. Pineapple
13. Quinoa
14. Yogurt

Effective Remedies To Treat Gout Symptoms

1. Apple Cider Vinegar For Gout

You Will Need

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• A glass of water

What You Have To Do

Mix ACV in water and drink this concoction for relief and prevention. You can add some honey if you wish to make the drink a little palatable.

How Often You Should Do This

Drink a glass of this every day, preferably in the mornings.

Why This Works

Apple cider vinegar is known as the magic potion to cure quite a few ailments, gout included. It has anti-inflammatory properties that help assuage the pain and soreness associated with a gout attack. It also breaks the uric acid deposits (3).

2. Cherries For Gout

You Will Need

A glass of cherry juice

What You Have To Do

Drink this juice during the day or eat 10-15 fresh cherries

How Often You Should Do This

Have cherries or cherry juice every day.

Why This Works

Cherries are tasty and also provide relief from gout deposits. They are rich in ascorbate and anthocyanins which have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties (4).

3. Baking Soda For Gout

You Will Need

• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• A glass of water

What You Have To Do

1. Add the baking soda to the water and mix well.
2. Drink this.

How Often You Should Do This

Drink 2-4 glasses in a day.

Why This Works

Baking soda increases the pH levels of the body fluids, including blood (5). This helps the uric acid deposits to dissolve into the blood quickly and be eliminated from the body.

Caution

Consult your doctor before starting to use this home remedy for gout.

4. Celery Seed For Gout

You Will Need

Celery seed extract capsules

What You Have To Do

Take a 500mg capsule of celery seed extract with water.

How Often You Should Do This

Ingest this capsule twice a day.

Why This Works

Celery seeds help in fast elimination of uric acid from the body (6).

5. Epsom Salt For Gout

You Will Need

• 1/2 cup Epsom salt
• A bucket of warm water

What You Have To Do

1. Add the Epsom salt to the water in the bucket and give it a mix.
2. Soak your affected feet in this water for 15-20 minutes.
3. Remove the feet and rinse with regular water.

How Often You Should Do This

Do a salt water soak as and when required.

Why This Works

Epsom salt is very relaxing for the body and muscles. It removes toxins from the body and soothes the inflammed joints (7). The warmth of the water will help to alleviate the swelling as well as the pain (8).

6. Papaya For Gout

You Will Need

Ripe papaya

What You Have To Do

Remove the seeds from the papaya and cut it into pieces.

Eat this as it is or with your favorite seasonings.

How Often You Should Do This

Eat a cup of papaya every day.

Why This Works

The papain enzyme found in papaya reduces the swelling at the joints. It helps in quick removal of uric acid from the body by increasing the body’s alkalinity (9).

7. Ginger For Gout

You Will Need

1-inch piece of ginger

What You Have To Do

Eat this in the morning. You can also apply freshly made ginger paste to the affected joints.

How Often You Should Do This

Do this every day.

Why This Works

Ginger contains anti-inflammatory compounds that help relieve the joint inflammation seen in gout (10).

8. Kale For Gout

You were often forced to eat this green leafy vegetable when you were a kid. Who knew that it would prove to be a beneficial addition to your diet a few decades down the line when your gout was making life miserable for you. Kale is rich in vitamin C which lowers the uric acid levels in the body fluids, thus alleviating the symptoms of gout (11).

9. Kombucha For Gout

You Will Need

Kombucha

What You Have To Do

Sip on a cup or two of this fermented tea during the day.

How Often You Should Do This

Drink this regularly.

Why This Works

Kombucha is a fermented tea that is available in health stores. It contains a healthy dosage of fungi, bacteria, and their fermented products that build up the immune system. This health drink has also shown to help with joint pain, like the one seen in gout (12).

Caution

If you experience any discomfort after drinking this tea, stop having it immediately. Side effects have been reported in a few people. It could range from a headache, nausea, and vomiting to even jaundice.

10. Lemon Juice For Gout

You Will Need

• A glass of water
• 1 lemon

What You Have To Do

1. Squeeze out the juice from a lemon and add it to the glass of water.
2. Drink this.

You can add some honey to counter the acidity of the lemon juice.

How Often You Should Do This

Have 2-3 glasses of lemon water in a day.

Why This Works

The high level of vitamin C in lemon juice helps to break down gout deposits by raising the urine’s pH (13).

11. Olive Oil For Gout

Olive oil contains healthy fats that exert an anti-inflammatory effect on the swollen joints in gout and arthritis. The polyphenols present in olive oil are responsible for this beneficial property. Including olive oil or other vegetable oils in the regular diet is recommended for gout patients. Start using this oil in all your salads and other dishes to reap its benefits. Olive oil also helps to remove the toxins that may be building inside the body with its antioxidant activity (14).

12. Pineapple For Gout

You Will Need

1 cup pineapple

What You Have To Do

Eat this by itself or in combination with other healthy fruits for gout.

How Often You Should Do This

Eat 2-4 servings of pineapple in a day.

Why This Works

Pineapple contains bromelain enzyme that has anti-inflammatory properties and is beneficial for the joint inflammation in gout. This enzyme also helps in breaking down the uric acid deposits (15, 16).

13. Quinoa For Gout

Quinoa contains building blocks for a potent antioxidant that maintains healthy joints and tissues. This property can be utilized in gout management (17). Quinoa can easily replace the other whole grains in your diet. Boil it as it is and consume just like rice, or use quinoa bread instead of your whole wheat bread. There are multiple recipes available online that can help you to include this wonderful whole grain in your daily diet with ease.

14. Yogurt For Gout

You Will Need

1 cup plain yogurt

What You Have To Do

Have this along with your meals or by itself.

How Often You Should Do This

Eat 2-3 servings in a day.

Why This Works

Yogurt and other dairy products are known to reduce the uric acid levels in the body (18).

CAUTION

Before using any of the above remedies, please consult your doctor to ensure that none of these interferes with the medicines that you have been prescribed to treat gout.

Gout is painful but can be easily managed and also prevented from progressing further by using the above remedies and including the appropriate recommendations in your diet. Let us now look at a few symptoms of gout.

What Are The Symptoms Of Gout?

• Increased uric acid content in the body fluids (hyperuricemia)
• Uric acid deposits at bone joints
• Presence of uric acid in the joint fluid
• Painful joints
• Swelling and tenderness of the joints (1, 2)

What Not To Eat To Prevent Gout Flare-ups?

The excess uric acid results from a diet high in purines. The following items contain either high purine content or can cause a rise in the uric acid levels through other mechanisms. These items are best avoided to prevent gout flare-ups –

• Meat such as beef, pork, lamb, rabbit, pheasant, venison, bacon, liver, and kidneys or any meat in large amounts
• Seafood such as mackerel, scallops, herring, and anchovies or other oily fish
• Beer
• Commercial gravy

The following food should be only occasionally consumed by gout patients –

• Chicken
• Seafood and fish
• Wheat bran, wheat germ, and oatmeal
• Dried peas, legumes, and beans
• Mushrooms
• A few veggies like spinach, cauliflower, and asparagus

How To Prevent Gout?

Follow these tips to prevent gout –

1. Watch Your Weight

Being overweight is said to be one of the contributing factors for gout. So, to reduce the instance of gout attack, it is imperative that you control your weight. A gout attack can come very rapidly, sometimes even overnight. Regular exercise is the first step you have to take to prevent these sudden attacks.

2. Control Your Diet

When we talk about watching our weight, it is but obvious that what we eat will play a vital role in determining and maintaining the said weight. Get to know which foods provide relief from gout and which foods are a complete no-no for the condition. Generally, foods with high vitamin and alkaline content are said to help with the dissolution of gout deposits. So try and include these in your diet. Many recommendations for foods to eat and foods to avoid are given above.

3. Stay Well-Hydrated

One of the chief reasons why the kidneys are unable to excrete uric acid from the body is the absence or the paucity of hydration. Hence, keep your body well hydrated to aid the process of uric acid extraction. Drink at least 2-3 litres of water every day to help your body flush out uric acid as well as other toxins. The bonus: Drinking plenty of water will help keep your skin young and healthy!

4. Ditch The Booze

Alcohol is known to dehydrate the body. And as mentioned above, a dehydrated body is very vulnerable to a gout attack. Hence, if you’re already prone to such attacks, or have been diagnosed with gout, it would do you a world of good to ditch alcohol altogether.

5. Eliminate Caffeine

Apart from alcohol, caffeine is also said to trigger gout attacks. So, as far as possible, try and stay away from foods with high caffeine content. These include items like coffee, chocolates, cocoa, tea, etc.

Remember, the home remedies for gout pain given above are to be used only as supplementary to your physician’s prescription. Do NOT use them as a substitute, because gout can be effectively cured only with professional medical intervention. You can make simple changes to your lifestyle and diet, and provide a solid support to the prescription medicines to get quick relief from gout.

Do let us know if you tried any of the remedies and how they helped you. We would love to have your feedback.

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Author

Kushneet KukrejaHealth & Wellness Writer

 

Kushneet holds a postgraduate degree in biotechnology from Kingston University, London, and is an ISSA Certified Specialist in Fitness & Nutrition with 2 years of experience. Her scientific background, coupled with her passion for writing, propelled her towards content writing.

Read full bio of Kushneet Kukreja