Gout Diet – Too many contradictions

[D.C. Yee]

Recently, i have been reading up on so called “good” and “bad” foods for Gout. It is unbelievable the amount of contradiction we see out there.

Is there any final comprehensive, most accurate list out there? I have seen both sides argued for strawberries, oats, mushrooms, soy, and many many more.

It’s getting increasingly frustrating on getting an answer. Yes, i have read the forums here and i do understand that some foods may have high purines, but they don’t necessarily convert to Uric Acid easily.

But, i still would like to get a better more accurate complete list. Maybe we can start on the four foods i listed above (which I happen to enjoy eating)

Strawberries, oats, mushrooms, and soy milk? Anyone?

[kmater]

Strawberries, oats, mushrooms, and soy don’t do anything to me but oats give my dad flares. I’ve noticed with my gout I can have almost anything I want as long as I eat in moderation and balance. One weird thing though is too much sugar gives me flares. I can’t drink soda and energy drinks. Plus absolutely can’t have any gravy. The best answer I can give you is wait until you have no pain and try it. That’s how I figured mine out. Everyone is different so much so that my father and I have don’t have everything in common.

[Keith Taylor (GoutPal Admin)]

The contradictions arise because there really is no such thing as good or bad foods – only good or bad diet. You cannot take one food or drink item in isolation and determine it’s effect on gout. There are lots of people that will tell you what is good and what is bad. That is no different from politicians telling you Republicans are good/bad, or Democrats are good/bad. It is no different from religious despots telling you that Christianity is good/bad or Islam is good/bad. People will tell you what they want to believe. I want you to believe that I can help you live a life that is free from gout pain. Do you believe me?

Key food facts for gout sufferers:

1. For many gout sufferers, food is completely irrelevant.
2. It is often relevant to general health, but not to gout.

Gout is only caused by excess uric acid, but excess uric acid has many causes. It is mainly genetic. It is commonly caused by medicines for other health problems.

If excess uric acid is caused by food, it is not any particular food, but a combination of 1 or more:

• Excess calories
• Excess iron
• Excess animal purines
• Bad eating habits, mainly fasting/starvation, bingeing/feasting, or dehydration.

If you see lists of good and bad foods, which of these 4 gout-related issues are they addressing?

The answer is none of them, because a single food item does not matter.

If all you eat is “strawberries, oats, mushrooms, [and] soy” then you will die before you need to. That diet is too restricted to be healthy. It is absolutely pointless discussing this list of 4 food items, because it has nothing to do with gout.

If those are your favorite foods, incorporate them into a healthy diet.

Don’t use up all your daily fruit calorie allowance on strawberries – get a better mix of micro-nutrients with a variety of different colored fruits.
Don’t use up all your daily grain calorie allowance on oats – get a better mix of micro-nutrients with a variety of different whole grains.

Off the top of my head, the only bad food I can think of is anything containing trans-fats (hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fat). They are so bad for you that the likelihood is you will die from heart disease before gout gets you.

Gout diet has to start with a generally healthy diet. All governments produce healthy eating guides. American guides particularly try to warn against excess calories, too many calories from animal sources compared to plant sources, and excess salt and sugar. All those problems with generally unhealthy diet will make gout worse. They are far more important than purines.

If you eat a healthy diet, and you have a gout treatment plan, there are ways to tweak a generally healthy diet to be more gout friendly. This cannot be generalized – it has to be done on a personal basis, as everyone has different circumstances.

I can provide personal eating plans if required, but you are going to have to commit to sharing a lot of personal information including gout history, other relevant medical history, uric acid blood test results history, food preferences and allergies, typical weekly food and drink intake. Track and post that lot here, and I will be delighted to give you a personalized eating plan for gout that you will enjoy.

Or just take allopurinol and stop worrying.

I’ve hinted at the main thing that is missing here. Gout diet needs the context of a gout treatment plan. In that case, if your plan is to stop pain, you can assess if a food item is likely to increase or decrease inflammation. If your plan is to lower uric acid, then you can assess what part a food item can play in reaching your target. But, you still need the context of the rest of your diet.

Individual food items can be judged against a treatment plan and the rest of the food that you eat. Otherwise, there are no good or bad foods for gout. It’s just food.

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