Cupping guides
Gout: how a gout attack feels (big toe, foot, knee), why uric acid rises (diet, alcohol, kidneys, medicines, heredity), how the diagnosis is made, treatment and prevention with medicines and diet, and why you shouldn't cup a joint during an attack
You wake in the middle of the night because the joint of your big toe is glowing red, swollen, so tender that the sheet hurts and so hot you can feel it through the sock. That is the classic gout attack, and it is one of the most painful experiences a joint can give. Gout is due to uric acid, a normal waste product, crystallising in the joint when the level in the blood has been too high for too long, and the crystals trigger a violent inflammation. It affects one in twenty men and one in fifty women, more often with age, and it is the joint disease that can be treated most effectively of all, if it is taken seriously: attacks can be stopped within a day, and with uric acid-lowering medicines and a few dietary habits they can stop completely. Here is how an attack feels and how it differs from an infection, osteoarthritis and hallux valgus, the causes, how the diagnosis is made, what to do during the attack, how to prevent the next one, what diet actually means (less than many think, with some important exceptions), and a clear message on cupping and massage: never on a joint during a gout attack, but by all means on the muscles around it between attacks.
Learn more
Cracking knees? Popping, grinding and cracking joints: why they make noise, when it is harmless, when to seek care, whether cracking your knuckles is bad, and exercises and cupping that help
It cracks when you stand up, pops when you climb stairs and grinds when you bend the knee deeply. Joint noises are extremely common and in the vast majority of cases completely harmless: gas bubbles collapsing in the joint fluid, a tendon snapping over a bony edge, or cartilage that has become a little uneven with the years. Here we explain what the different sounds are, why knees crack more after sitting and with age, when the sound is a sign of something (pain, swelling, locking, a pop at the time of an injury), the truth about cracking your knuckles, and what actually makes knees quieter and stronger: strength in thighs and glutes, mobility in hip and ankle, regular movement, and cupping the thigh for tight structures that pull the kneecap off track.
Learn more