A growing trend among people who live in a western culture is the move towards natural remedies and treatments to resolve and prevent illnesses.  Middle eastern and Eastern culture have used natural remedies for thousands of years to combat illness and disease.  What does this have to do with gout?  As time goes by, an increased number of gout patients are turning to alternative therapy to treat their gout.  Most gout patients are aware of using cherries to treat their gout, but what other gout treatments are available to them?  Here are three lesser known treatments for gout you can use.

1. Devil’s Claw is an herb that is mostly found in Namibia, Africa.  It can also be found in parts of Texas.  This plant, also known as the unicorn plant, can benefit gout patients because of it is thought to lessen uric acid concentrations in the body.  This herb is mostly used in extract form.  Rheumatology, a rheumatoid arthritis journal stated that a study showed that Devil’s claw had about the same effect as the drug Vioxx in treating pain.  This is good for gout because rheumatoid arthritis and gout pain are both mostly caused by inflammation.  Devil’s claw is not easy to find offline, but some natural alternative health stores may carry it.  You can purchase it online.

2. Turmeric, a member of the ginger family, is another natural gout treatment you can use to help ease gout pain.  Turmeric works through curcurmin by attempting to block prostaglandins from increasing.  Prostaglandins play a part in controlling inflammation.  When they get out of control, inflammation can increase causing gout pain.  You can buy this in supplement form at an alternative health store or online.  You can also buy it in some grocery stores as a spice and add it to your food.  It is mostly known for being used in Asian cuisine.

3.  Yarrow is another herbal treatment for gout.  This plant has many medicinal benefits and like devil’s claw and turmeric may also reduce swelling.   Yarrow is a diuretic, which helps flush uric acid out of the body, however, make sure you are hydrating yourself properly as becoming dehydrated can increase uric acid concentration and form deposits.  You can drink yarrow as a tea or take it in extract or capsule form.

Devil’s claw, turmeric, and yarrow are three treatments for gout you can use to help reduce the occurrences of gout.