Is Salami Bad for Gout?

Is Salami Bad for Gout Introduction

People often ask, "Is Salami Bad for Gout?" But gout research on individual food items is always very limited. So first we see how salami fits into a healthy diet. Then we consider uric acid. Finally, you understand how to avoid or include salami in your weekly food choices.

Is Salami Bad for Gout Purpose

I wrote Is Salami Bad for Gout to help gout sufferers understand basic food choices. Especially how to discuss salami with their doctors and other professional advisers. Because many gout sufferers are concerned how individual foods affect their gout. So this is part of GoutPal Foodies Plan. Which helps gout sufferers put their food concerns into the wider context of managing total food intake with respect to gout management.

Before we can answer, "Is Salami Bad for Gout", we need to consider the bigger picture of balanced healthy eating patterns. So let's look at how salami fits into national Dietary Guidelines^[1].

Salami is specifically excluded from acceptable food groups in the latest dietary guidelines. Though in earlier versions, it was identified as one of the processed meats: dietary patterns characterized by higher intake of red and processed meats, sugar-sweetened foods and beverages, and refined grains are, in and of themselves, associated with detrimental health outcomes. These findings are consistent with—and build on—the evidence base that informed the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines.

So, the recommendation is: Most intake of meats and poultry should be from fresh, frozen, or canned, and in lean forms (e.g., chicken breast or ground turkey) versus processed meats (e.g., hot dogs, sausages, ham, luncheon meats).

But you should discuss your own salami intake with professional health advisers. Especially with respect to managing your gout. So to assist you with those discussions, I will continue to explain some facts about salami. Followed by some common concerns about how salami might affect gout and uric acid.

Salami and Gout Science

I cannot find any studies of salami with respect to gout or uric acid. So in such cases, I refer to the part that salami might play in an acceptable gout foundation eating plan. Such plans include:

Salami and PRAL Alkaline Diet

For gout sufferers adopting an Alkaline Diet, the PRAL score for salami is +9 per 100 g. Rising to +14 for reduced fat salami.

Salami and Mediterranean Diet

Inclusion of salami in the modern interpretation of Mediterranean Diet is controversial. Because it can be traditional Mediterranean food. Yet modern preparation techniques have caused scares over nitrates. And while traditionalists argue that salami should be nitrate-free, there is still concern over salt intake.

One study that defines a Mediterranean style eating plan includes salami^[2]. But limits the "Wellness Quantity" to 6-7 slices (50 g) per week.

Salami and DASH

Salami is excluded from the Dietary Approaches To Stop Hypertension (DASH) as a high-sodium food.

Salami and Vegetarian Diet

Salami is excluded from vegetarian diets as a meat product. However, I found a plant-based salami recipe that inspired my featured image for this article^[3]. Which is one of many meat-free versions of salami. Though, you must discuss this with your health professionals to ensure that your vegetarian gout diet provides all your essential nutrients.

Is Salami High in Purines?

Finally, let's consider the effect of salami on uric acid. Where we can see different values depending on the type of salami. So, you have to consider that any value is likely to be an estimate. Based on some published values:

My usual reference is the SFK book that describes Sausage salami, German with a total purine count of 104 mg/100 g^[4]. This is the same value used by Lockyer in 2016^[5]. Which puts salami at the lower end of the Moderate Purine Level (100-200 mg/100 g).
In 2014, a Japanese gout study calculated their salami purine content higher at 146 mg/100 g^[6]. So, mid-range moderate purine level.
Alternatively, the 2010 Polish study of vegetarian meat alternatives calculated soy protein salami purine content at 41 mg/100 g^[7]. Putting vegetarian salami near the top of the Very Low Purine Level (0-50 mg/100 g).

Gout & Salami Summary

Normal consumption of salami is up to 50 g per week. So this is unlikely to have a very bad effect on gout. But there are alternative protein sources that are healthier for gout and for general health.

Is Salami Bad for Your Gout?

As you have seen, general dietary recommendations are against eating salami. But what if it is one of your favorite foods? In that case, discuss with your health advisers how you might incorporate some salami in your total food intake. This is especially important as "salami" covers a huge range of different cuts of meats that are prepared in many ways.

If you still have concerns about salami and gout, you should discuss those concerns with your professional health advisers. However, if you want help to prepare for that discussion, please contact me.

Leave Is Salami Bad for Gout? to browse the Gout and Uric Acid Blog.

Is Salami Bad for Gout? References

U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th Edition. December 2020.
Altomare, Roberta, Francesco Cacciabaudo, Giuseppe Damiano, Vincenzo Davide Palumbo, Maria Concetta Gioviale, Maurizio Bellavia, Giovanni Tomasello, and Attilio Ignazio Lo Monte. "The mediterranean diet: a history of health." Iranian journal of public health 42, no. 5 (2013): 449.
Yum Vegan Blog. "Vegan Salami (Seitan Salami) And the Best Ways to Use It." yumveganlunchideas.com/vegan-salami-seitan-salami-and-the-best-ways-to-use-it/ (Jan 2021).
Souci, Siegfried Walter, Walter Fachmann, Heinrich Kraut, Heimo Scherz, and Friedrich Senser. "Food composition and nutrition tables." (2000).
Lockyer, S., and S. Stanner. "Diet and gout–what is the role of purines?." (2016): 155-166.
Kaneko, Kiyoko, Yasuo Aoyagi, Tomoko Fukuuchi, Katsunori Inazawa, and Noriko Yamaoka. "Total purine and purine base content of common foodstuffs for facilitating nutritional therapy for gout and hyperuricemia." Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin (2014): b13-00967.
Havlik, Jaroslav, Vladimir Plachy, Javier Fernandez, and Vojtech Rada. "Dietary purines in vegetarian meat analogues." Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 90, no. 14 (2010): 2352-2357.