Can diet alone stop gout?

[in-the-forties]

I was diagnosed with gout about 6 months ago, severe swelling and soreness in my right knee. I immediately changed my diet and then went for a blood test about a week after being diagnosed. My uric acid level was 5.7, under the 6.0 lower limit that was considered too high. I refused at the time to accept any medication, and instead insisted to try and control it by diet alone. I have not had a severe "flare-up" since, but just wondering if diet alone can stop it? Even though I haven't had a "flare-up" recently, I have felt more than normal pain in my knees, especially at night and while in bed. Is this uric acid build up without swelling?

[Bheart74]

I had the same problem as well. I think diet alone won't help you cure your gout symptoms but an entire lifestyle change.


Diet
Exercise
Natural Home Remedies


Unfortunately the build up of uric acid over time is the main reason why it's so hard to get rid of gout. If you can find away to lower your uric acid any other way then you hit the jackpot and found the magic bullet everyone's been looking for, but for now Diet is the primary source for doing this - a Low Purine Diet.

Good Luck

[thurstonb]

Hi there.

Like you, I was not all that keen on the drugs for my gout. I actually did end up on allopurinol for a while and my doctor told me I would be on it for the rest of my life. Like hell!

So eventually I dumped the drugs and just concentrated on what I was eating. And I cut right back on the alcohol (went from "far too much" to "none at all").

Haven't had any further flare-ups. But occasionally I would have to admit I get the odd pain where I think "Oh Oh", but I've not had an attack yet.

Cheers
Brett

[in-the-forties]

Thanks guys for the replies! It sounds like there may be some hope to stay off any drugs. I have found it to be very hard to find an accurate diet plan. It seems everyone I view has a different "do not eat" list. Many conflicting foods on the list. Where could I go for an accurate list of "do" and "do not" list of foods to eat. Some say sodas & sweets are O.K. but others say stay away from. What about potatoes?----a friend told me that really affects his gout. Thanks!

[Dean]

There does seem to be a lot of "do not eat" lists out there... and it's hard to see the reasoning behind it sometimes. It makes me think that maybe we have to just keep experimenting with it ourselves. Maybe it depends on your genes?

[thurstonb]

It's not always about the food you avoid.

There is a lot of evidence that suggests that you can eat foods beneficial for gout patients. In particular Alkaline foods are considered beneficial, as well as cherries which contain a lot of antioxidants.

In contradiction to the advice to take alkaline foods, a lot of research indicates that Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is very good at lowering the risk of getting gout.

On top of that there is almost certainly a genetic component to gout. In fact there has been some recent research to indicate that a gene variant called SLC2A may make it harder for the body to excrete uric acid.

While it pays to notice what foods might trigger a gout attack it would also be worthwhile learning a bit more about the foods that you should be adding to your diet!

Hope that helps. There's a lot of new information about gout coming out, and a lot of research all the time. It's becoming a significant health issue so it's a hot health topic right now for sure.

One of the most recent things I saw was that the slime from a Scottish starfish might be beneficial for people with inflammatory diseases! Go figure!

[Dean]

Been seeing more mentions of "alkaline" foods... what are some examples?

[tonyccc]

Forget,purine rich foods,forget meat, forget fish, forget alcohol,being the cause of your gout.The real culprit as I
found out after years of testing is FRUCTOSE.Try and reduce or eliminate that and your gout problems will be over.
You will be grateful to me for giving you this information.your doctors might disagree but what do you have to lose,
trying it for a couple of weeks.For me it worked wonders,after suffering from gout for more than 10 years.

[cwowinningham]

I have had gout since I was 25 years of age (41 now) and I truly believe diet is about the only thing that has ever helped me. It is crucial and also very difficult to maintain....in my opinion it is very person specific on the moderation of meat. You just can't eat too much of meat that is high in purines for sure. chicken and fish are what i try and eat....and occassional beef.

If you have been in the habit of taking a lot of red meat and especially pork or sausage...and man it is good....it will be harder to break....but for me it was a must.

I would have outbreaks almost every other month....for several weeks....

Also, I could not take any of the preventatives...it caused major stomach problems. (no uloric, allipurinol)

I have found a solution for me and it has worked and if you want you can contact me for more info. cwowinningham@yahoo.com

Norm

[dimpleromani]

A normal eating habit, always prioritize to eat foods containing carbohydrates like potatoes, rice, whole cereal products. Eat also fresh fruits, raw vegetables, soy and low-fat dairy products to prevent the episodic symptoms. Low-fat dairy products can also normalize serum uric acid.

Medifast Recipes (http://www.dietplansx.org/medifast/medifast-recipes)