{"id":5933,"date":"2018-10-23T20:30:31","date_gmt":"2018-10-23T20:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/?p=5933"},"modified":"2020-10-13T18:20:56","modified_gmt":"2020-10-13T18:20:56","slug":"gout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/gout\/","title":{"rendered":"Gout"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/gout-896963356.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-5934\" src=\"http:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/gout-896963356.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"343\" height=\"231\"><\/a>Gout is a common form of arthritis that is characterized by attacks of pain, swelling, stiffness, redness or tenderness in the joints. These attacks or flares typically affect one joint at a time. They can occur suddenly and return over time.<\/p>\n<p>Gout is caused by an accumulation of urate crystals in the joint.&nbsp; Urate crystals form when there are high levels of uric acid in your blood. Uric acid is produced when your body breaks down purines; substances that are found naturally in our bodies and in foods such as steak, seafood and organ meats.&nbsp; Alcoholic beverages and drinks sweetened with fructose (fruit sugar) are known to promote higher levels of uric acid in the body.<\/p>\n<p>Some people are more likely to develop gout than others. Factors that increase your risk include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Being obese; If you are overweight your body produces more uric acid and your kidneys may not be able to properly eliminate excessive amounts<\/li>\n<li>Having a diet that is rich in purines, this includes seafood, red meat, organ meat, or beverages sweetened with fructose<\/li>\n<li>Consuming excessive amounts of alcohol<\/li>\n<li>Having certain health conditions such as&nbsp; hypertension, diabetes,&nbsp; heart and kidney disease<\/li>\n<li>Using certain medications such as diuretics or low-dose aspirin<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Men are more at risk of developing gout than women; this is because women tend to produce lower levels of uric acid. Men are also more likely to develop gout at an earlier age than women.&nbsp;&nbsp; In men, symptoms may occur as early as the age of 30, and in women after menopause.<\/p>\n<p>There are a few things you can do to reduce your risk for gout or prevent future attacks, they include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Drinking plenty of water<\/li>\n<li>Limiting your intake of seafood and meat<\/li>\n<li>Limiting or avoiding alcohol<\/li>\n<li>Maintaining a healthy weight<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you are experiencing symptoms of gout, or believe that you may be at risk, make an appointment to see a physician. Your doctor may order a series of test or assess your current state of health to receive a diagnosis or to determine if you are at risk.<\/p>\n<p class=\"disclaimer\">All content of this newsletter is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.  Please consult a medical professional before adopting any of the suggestions on this page.   You must never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment based upon any content of this newsletter.<strong>  PROMPTLY CONSULT YOUR PHYSICIAN OR CALL 911 IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY.<\/strong> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gout is a common form of arthritis that is characterized by attacks of pain, swelling, stiffness, redness or tenderness in the joints. These attacks or flares typically affect one joint at a time. They can occur suddenly and return over &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/gout\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,122,1817],"tags":[211,1468],"class_list":["post-5933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general-health","category-arthritis","category-medical-library","tag-arthritis","tag-gout"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5933"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7863,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5933\/revisions\/7863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}