Cut Your Gout Flare In Half With This Herbal Blend

November 26, 2024

A gout flare can be very painful and disruptive to everyday life.  These flares can occur at any time but most often during the night.  Herbs can be a great ally in providing relief from the flare and decrease the occurrence of these flares.  In this video we’ll learn about some helpful lifestyle changes, herbal allies and demonstrate how to make a daily infusion to provide relief and long term support.  

Overview of Gout

Gout is a form of arthritis. In gout, monosodium urate crystals deposit into joints, bone and soft tissue, causing inflammation, extreme pain, and making the joint red, hot, extremely tender to touch, and swollen. When this happens, it’s called a gouty flare.

The underlying cause of gout is hyperuricemia, too much uric acid (urate) in the blood. When uric acid is abnormally high, it accumulates in the blood and tissues, then results in the formation of sharp, needle-like crystals in areas with slower blood flow or lowered body temperature, like the joints, commonly the big toe.

Repeated gouty attacks can damage the joints, cause deformity, limit joint motion, kidney stone formation, obstruction and/or infection, and lead to the development of trophi, permanent  deposits of urate crystals.  Uric acid is not a fundamentally harmful substance.  Most uric acid dissolves in the blood, passes through the kidneys, and leaves the body in urine.  But when there’s decreased kidney function and other factors then gout can develop.  

Lifestyle and Diet

Lifestyle, including dietary changes can be very helpful and supportive.  Increasing whole food vitamin C decreases uric acid levels.  These foods can include cherries, kiwi, oranges, and dark colored berries.  Tart cherry juice is very helpful because the enzymes in it help break down the build up of uric acid, this is great long term maintenance. 

Eliminating alcohol and soda (or other sugary drinks) which have been linked to other metabolic conditions is helpful.  Alcohol specifically increases purine breakdown in the liver leading to higher levels of uric acid. Additionally, alcohol metabolism produces lactic acid, which impairs the kidneys' ability to excrete uric acid efficiently. Beer is particularly problematic as it contains both alcohol and purines, while spirits may have a lesser impact depending on consumption.

Purines are chemical compounds broken down into uric acid. Sugary drinks like soda, high in fructose, can also elevate uric acid. Too much purine can lead to high levels of uric acid.  Instead choose water to keep you hydrated.  Also limiting high purine foods, for example red meat, shellfish, organ meats, anchovies, and mushrooms, are also supportive.  

Emotional connection

Other lifestyle changes can include spiritual and emotional practices that are supportive to the body and decrease gout flares.  Gout is a condition ruled by Taurus which is a more rigid astrological sign who is slow to change and comfortable where they are.  Small suggestions and changes work best.  Gout can signify negative emotions and a feeling of being trapped on an emotional level.  Some helpful practices to let go and release these emotions can be journaling, somatic therapy which includes whole body movement, breathwork and releasing of emotions, and even talking with a trusted friend.  

Herbs & Herbal Actions

Simply put gout is a condition where uric acids build up and get stuck somewhere in the body.  You want herbs that will move those acids out, decrease inflammation and provide relief. When inflammation isn’t in check it starts to destroy healthy cells and tissues.  And as long term care, you want herbs that will nourish the body, specifically the kidneys, keep the fluids moving in the body and decrease inflammation.  Some examples of these herbs are nettle leaf, celery seed, hibiscus, astragalus, turmeric, hawthorn berries, oatstraw and dandelion root.  

Let’s get into some specific herbs that provide relief.  For today we are going to create an infusion I used with a client you heard from earlier that really helped him manage his gout and ease gout flares.  I recommend drinking this infusion everyday to keep the flares at bay but if there is a sudden onset of a flare I recommend drinking 1 cup every 2-3 hours until the discomfort and pain has eased.  

Herbal Blend

For gout we want to focus on reducing inflammation and supporting kidney function.  This formula helps reduce inflammation by cooling from the inside out and rebalancing the inflammatory response.  The kidneys are supported by using restorative herbs that nourish the kidneys and keep fluid moving.

(1 Tablespoon Nettle)  First up is Nettle leaf!  What a nutritious, cooling plant.  Nettle is high in many vitamins and minerals which makes it a nutritive powerhouse.  It is a diuretic which drains moisture from the body and keeps fluids moving.  Nettle is also very restorative to the kidneys long term, which is known as a kidney trophorestorative.  It is also inflammation modulating especially for arthritic joints, which means it moves any stagnant fluid creating inflammation.  

(1 Tablespoon powdered Turmeric) Next is Turmeric root.  We all know this plant is fantastic for reducing inflammation throughout the body.  It is also antiarthritic, so very supportive for the joints where uric acid likes to deposit.  Turmeric is also antioxidant and reduces the pro-inflammatory molecules in the body.  

(1 Tablespoon powdered celery seed)  Next is Celery seed.  Many of us know this plant and we use it a lot in our cooking.  Well the seeds are powerful medicine and a great ally for gout.  Celery seed is cooling.  It’s a diuretic which moves that stagnant fluid, clearing swelling and supporting the kidneys.  It is also a circulatory stimulant that brings fresh blood to the site to promote healing and decrease uric acid accumulation.

(¼ tsp ground black pepper)  Then we have a little bit of Black Pepper that is warming and helps with the absorption of the turmeric.  The piperine in black pepper helps the body absorb the curcumin in the turmeric which has the inflammation modulating properties.  

(1 tsp melted coconut oil)  We also add a little bit of coconut oil.  The fat in the coconut oil helps the body absorb the turmeric.  Our body needs both fat from the oil and the piperine from the black pepper to fully absorb and utilize the constituents in the turmeric root. 

We combine these into a jar with 16 ounces of hot water, cover it and let it steep for 4-6 hours.  Strain and incorporate 1 cup into your wellness routine and herbal practice.  And like I said earlier you can also use this when a gout flare suddenly happens.  Just increase the dosage to 1 cup every 2-3 hours until relief.  

Daily Infusion recipe

1 Tbsp Stinging Nettle leaf

1 Tbsp Turmeric root - powdered

1 Tbsp Celery seed - powdered

¼ tsp Black pepper

1 tsp of coconut oil  

Watch the video tutorial

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