Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Gout Treatments-Part 4|3 Ways Strawberries Help Get Rid of Painful Gout Attacks

3 Ways Strawberries Help Get Rid of Gout

We are currently on a series on different methods of gout treatments. So far, we have discussed the ways that pineapples, grapes, and bananas help ease painful gout symptoms. Next up on the list are strawberries. We are almost into strawberry season so if you suffer from gout, please take the time to eat some fresh strawberries in the next couple months because they will help reduce your incidence and severity of gout attacks.



So how do strawberries help get rid of gout?



First of all, strawberries have a high Vitamin C content. As we saw for the other treatments for gout, at least three studies have reported that Vitamin C will either reduce uric acid levels or protect against gout. One study showed that vitamin C reduced uric acid by 10-15%. This alone is enough for me to make strawberries part of my gout treatments program.

Strawberries have a very high Vitamin C content compared to other fruits (59 mg per 100 gram serving) and they also contain a high quantity of flavonoids. Their flavonoids' profile (the anthocyanidins, flavan-3-ols and so on) is comparable to cherries, in some ways they do better than cherries for gout, the leading natural remedy for gout.



The Vitamin C in strawberries helps neutralize uric acid which will help lower the quantities of crystals found in your joints, which is what causes gout pain.


Another way strawberries help get rid of gout is by the flavonoid quercetin. Quercetin, the dietary supplement, is reportedly helpful in treating gout, because it's an antioxidant and because it may inhibit xanthine oxidase which will lower uric acid creation. Quercitin helps reduce inflammation and is found in strawberries. It is also found in pineapples, onions, and apples (the apples' skin). Grapefruits are another fine source as well as some green leafy vegetables.



As with the other fruits we've discussed, it is important to have a balance of different types of fruits and vegetables that can help you get rid of your gout. Strawberries all by themselves will reduce your incidences of gout, but not help you get rid of it altogether. So please consider using variety. Next up on our list is blueberries.



Until later,



Medicman

1 comments:

RN said...

Thank you for the tip, that pain is awful