Johnson

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  • in reply to: The Doctor Visit for Allopurinol #2938
    Johnson
    Participant


    First Gout Attack on Allopurinol

    entire right foot swollen up, attack started about 10 days ago…measured UA. 4.4, so that is low, must be dissolving ua back into bloodstream?


    in reply to: The Doctor Visit for Allopurinol #2666
    Johnson
    Participant

    Week 1 of Allopurinol

    Well, this past week I’ve had the flu…so its very hard to tell the effect of the allo in terms of how I feel or side effects. Possibly it has a slightly draining effect but I’m not sure. I need to make sure I’m getting plenty of water regardless.

    The blood test result was interesting. 3.7… but the strip area didnt get 100% covered. Still, I think i’ve put even less blood on it before and got a 4.4 or something, so it seems its going down. I’m content to wait for further weeks’ data to see the real effect.

    No difference in tophi and I have to remind myself those things don’t correct overnight.

    in reply to: The Doctor Visit for Allopurinol #2631
    Johnson
    Participant

    yeah..kinda bummed out that 30 days of juice fasting didnt seem to fix the problems but hopefully the medication will help.

    On the positive side of that, I’m sure my entire body is functioning better and is more healthy. I’ve lost 22 pounds in the process.

    in reply to: The Doctor Visit for Allopurinol #2626
    Johnson
    Participant

    Started the allopurinol

    First pill popped today… 300mg. Let’s see where things are at in the weeks ahead.


    in reply to: Uric acid blood test – what do results mean? #2579
    Johnson
    Participant

    just tested again, first time was 4.3, blood didnt fill up the area.
    tested again, and used too much blood , it was 7.4… so yes a very
    sensitive kit. really seems to depend on how much blood is used.
    have to keep practicing with it so there’s just enough blood to
    fill the area and not more.

    in reply to: Uric acid blood test – what do results mean? #2516
    Johnson
    Participant

    Home Uric Acid Testing continues

    So week 2 of the testing. With the knowledge that
    UA levels can fluctuate even throughout the day,
    and given the advice that the best time to
    test is in the morning on an empty stomach,
    that is what I did today.

    I actually had some slight gout pains in my
    right toe and ankle… it “felt” like I
    was very acidic this morning.

    But the results showed otherwise.

    Actually, I had a bit of trouble
    with the tester and it was a good
    experience to see how to best
    use it and the variance it can
    produce.

    When I used the tester last week,
    it seemed like I did it perfectly.
    I put one drop on the tester and
    squeezed a bit more blood and it
    filled up the testing strip area
    perfectly without overflowing.

    This week, I put a drop of blood
    on but it only covered about half
    the area, and I think my finger
    was at a weird angle to it. By
    the time I tried to reposition it,
    seconds were ticking by and I thought:
    eh, just leave it.

    And the result was a 4.4. I thought
    that has to be way too low.

    So then I redid the test with a new
    strip and a new prick of a different
    finger.

    This time I made sure to position myself
    well and squeezed a good amount before
    dabbing the strip. This time it
    filled up the strip completely and
    actually was more than the previous
    week. It seemed like I erred slightly
    on the side of too much blood.

    But the result was a 6.0… down from
    7.7, which is a big improvement. I
    have to think the result was fairly
    accurate as far as the blood, but
    also that doing it in the morning
    probably made a big difference in
    the score.

    In any case, I’m in a good mood
    about my improved score.

    in reply to: Got the UA kit, the results are in… #2515
    Johnson
    Participant

    The one i’m using is UASure. Seems pretty decent but im no expert.

    in reply to: Got the UA kit, the results are in… #2512
    Johnson
    Participant

    Jan 21, 2017. 4:30 pm: 7.7

    Jan 28, 2017. 9:15 am: 6.0

    Feb 4, 2017. 11:40 am: 7.4 – note: too much blood on strip

    Feb 11, 2017. 3:30 pm: 7.7 – note slightly too much blood on strip but when I tried to test a second time with less i ended up adding more and messing the results (8.6) even though it looked like a lesser amount.

    Feb 19, 2017 10:50 am 3.7 — blood got 80% of the area. First week on Allo.

    Feb 25, 2017 3:30 pm 4.0 – looked like perfect measurement.

    March 5, 2017 1:05 pm 4.7 – slightly low blood. bad diet past week.

    April 15, 2017 11:18 am 4.3 – stopped measuring every single week as it appears to be stabilized but will keep an eye on the situation.

    in reply to: Got the UA kit, the results are in… #2511
    Johnson
    Participant

    UA WEEKLY TESTING RESULTS

    Please don’t comment on this thread as this
    one is simply a place for me to list the weekly
    results.

    If you’d like to make a comment, please
    use one of the other topics in my personal gout
    diary. Thanks.

    in reply to: Got the UA kit, the results are in… #2470
    Johnson
    Participant

    Can urine pH be measured? Are there kits for that?

    in reply to: Got the UA kit, the results are in… #2462
    Johnson
    Participant

    Thanks for the comments Keith and ‘nobody’.

    Agree that there can be a lot of variance and its good
    to plot over time. Very interesting that link you
    posted where the guy had a UA spike after mountain
    biking. That tells me that body chemistry can and
    does change quickly. I am guessing those spikes from
    mountain biking could be from lactic acid making the body
    more acidic, or perhaps the body is involved in other
    processes and less on processing the blood. It makes
    me realize its all about keeping the body chemistry
    in tip top shape as much of the time as possible, and
    gives credence to the theory that keeping the body alkalized as
    much as possible will help gout.

    As far as the interaction, I welcome it.
    The more the merrier.

    Off topic discussions are fine. I doubt
    it will get too crazy. If it does, I’ll
    let you know.

    in reply to: Getting started with Gout Control #2442
    Johnson
    Participant

    You are right — 30 days of healthy habits doesn’t make up for years of bad habits. That being said, there’s a few benefits I can think of for doing a cleanse.

    1. It gives the body and digestive system a much needed rest from a toxic diet.
    2. It instills discipline.
    3. It tends to reset the appetite. At least for me… (The more I eat, the more I tend to get hungry and when I cut back, the body gets used to it.)
    4. after nothing but juice, even simple solid foods like, say, a potato, will seem amazing ๐Ÿ™‚

    Anyway i’m about to go to bed, this was day 8 and i’ve lost about 8 pounds.
    My elbow still is swollen though ๐Ÿ™ Gotta keep using that compress, maybe ice it… what do you know about swollen elbows? I feel no pain but there’s fluid in the elbow sac.

    in reply to: Getting started with Gout Control #2440
    Johnson
    Participant

    thanks… just to clarify — I haven’t really taken allopurinol consistently in a long time… it sounds like we’re on the same page as far as getting the baseline reading.

    I know 30 days is not a long time but I have read great things about how powerful a 30 day juice fast can be. Also, isn’t it true that being overweight greatly contributes to UA?

    Also, is it true that generally alkizing the body will decrease UA?

Viewing 13 posts - 1 through 13 (of 13 total)