I have had a problem with high uric acid for many years now. Only in recent years has the problem abated. Instead of up to 4-5 attacks a year, my gout is now an annual problem at worst. Last week however, it hit hard – not in the sense of severity of the inflammation or pain but the time it has taken to go away. Instead of the usual 1-2 days, this one lasted almost a whole week.
Thankfully, the pain was minimal this morning, despite a painful episode last night. I managed my Saturday morning run but just a while ago, decided to find out once and for all the true meaning of sweetmeats. I’m not sure now which is listed a no-no food for gout – sweetbread or sweetmeat. Googling it yields this:
Sweetmeat is not a meat at all – it is a pastry/nut/preserved fruit thing
Sweetbread is not a bread at all – it is a meat. An ofal – that part of an animal’s gland somewhere which is supposed to be delicate and tasty.
Why do people give confusing names to foodstuffs? Sweetmeat, one would think, is a meat item. No, it’s a pastry/desert item. Sweetbread on the other hand, is a meat. Hmmm.
Anyway, the causal link for me is rich food (in whatever form) together with too much exercise. Either on its own appear to be harmless. It is the combination of the two which sets things off.
It’s all an art anyway. Apparently my doctor in Malaysia used to tell me my uric acid reading is not high enough for me to be a gout victim. It is even on the low side. My tolerance level for uric acid however appears to be very low, so that even a low level sets off an attack. Maybe those crystals just love my joints, so they remain to clog up and make things painful.
“So, I commend the enjoyment of life.” (From the Bible – really. Eccl 8:15)
Ante 