Diet for Gout: Brussels Sprouts and Gout

Brussels sprouts and gout is topic #82 in the Gout and You series, which is based on popular searches by GoutPal visitors.

Brussels sprouts are included in USDA key foods list, and so I listed them in the Gout Foods Table for Vegetables. We can also see that Brussels sprouts are high in vitamin C which is good for uric acid.

From a gout point of view, they are quite unremarkable, as I can find no studies linking Brussels sprouts with gout or uric acid. On the other hand, food is prominent in the minds of many gout sufferers.

Brussels sprouts tend to divide opinion. Do you love them or hate them? It does not matter, and this is key to understanding good gout diet. You can plan a good diet around any foods that you love, and avoid foods that you hate. Therefore, this is a good time to use Brussels sprouts as an example of how you should plan a diet for gout.

In my diet for gout guidelines I explain that there are 2 different ways to plan a gout diet:

Diet for Gout Patients: If you have a gout diagnosis, you should have a gout management plan. Management plans best include specific treatments for uric acid lowering, and for pain control until your uric acid is safe. Your personal treatments might include dietary goals. Those goals will include daily targets for calories, iron, vitamin C, etc. You can use these personal goals to plan your own diet for gout. In future, I will make the gout foods tables interactive so you can use your own goals instead of the GoutPal Imaginary Standard.
Diet for Gout Sufferers: If you do not have a gout management plan, you can still plan a good diet for gout based on healthy eating principles. This allows you to follow tasty eating plans that you enjoy, without compromising your gout. For many gout sufferers, this might be all you need.

In both cases, the beauty of GoutPal’s Diet for Gout is, it’s based on you.

We start with what you eat now, or what you want to eat, then tweak it so that you trade some of the bad stuff for healthier options. There is almost nothing that you should never eat. Because a wide range of foods will make you healthier when eaten as part of a balanced diet. I’m going to use Brussels sprouts as an example. If you like them, eat more. If you hate them, chose a better food for you.

All you need to commit to is a healthy daily calorie target. Because a half cup of Brussels sprouts is just under 30 calories. If you love them, have more. If you like them, mix with other vegetables. If you hate them, choose something else.

Choosing foods you like is key to planning a good diet for gout. You need a healthy diet, but it must be foods you enjoy.

If you have any questions about Brussels sprouts, please ask in the gout support forum.

I will publish topic #81 in this series tomorrow. Please subscribe to my free gout information update service, to get email notification of all new topics: