Fitness
Fact-checked

At WiseGEEK, we're committed to delivering accurate, trustworthy information. Our expert-authored content is rigorously fact-checked and sourced from credible authorities. Discover how we uphold the highest standards in providing you with reliable knowledge.

Learn more...

What is the Best Gout Diet?

Synthia L. Rose
Synthia L. Rose

The best gout diet will favor vegetables and fruits over excessive protein, since protein can encourage uric acid, a precipitant of gout. Drinking liquids that elevate the body’s pH level is also an important preventative diet concern. Nutrition anchored with foods that have a reputation for warding off gout, such as cherries, completes an effective gout diet strategy.

Too much protein, whether from legumes, red meat, pork, or chicken, can trigger gout. Proteins contain compounds known as purines, which the body breaks down to form uric acid. When uric acid hardens into crystals that block areas in the joints, massive pain and swelling can result in gout-sensitive eaters. While any protein will contain some purines, eggs and dairy products made from skim milk have low quantities and can be the main protein sources for many people striving to adhere to a preventative gout diet.

Full fat dairy products can exacerbate gout.
Full fat dairy products can exacerbate gout.

Keeping the body’s pH system high is a little-known strategy for avoiding gout. Sodas and some juices have low pH levels, which allow uric acid crystals to form more readily. Alkaline drinks which raise the body’s pH system can prevent uric acid from crystallizing. Water with a spritz of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar is an alkaline drink often recommended by nutritionists to gout sufferers.

Many types of meat, especially those high in fat, can contribute to gout.
Many types of meat, especially those high in fat, can contribute to gout.

Green tea and carrot juice are additional beverages that can keep the body alkaline. The most common recommendation is black cherry juice, which carries a sufficiently high pH value. Regular cherry juice is generally not alkaline enough to be helpful, according to some pH studies.

Certain food choices are known for dissolving uric acid crystals and keeping gout at bay. High-potassium foods are one such group. Bananas, apricots, kiwi and cantaloupes are all high in potassium and can be a helpful part of any gout diet. Some dieticians recommend getting between 3,000 and 4,000 mg of potassium a day to deter attacks of gout; many gout sufferers elect to take potassium supplements. Vitamin C supplements have also been helpful to some people who want to avoid gout.

Kiwis are high in potassium, which can be good for gout.
Kiwis are high in potassium, which can be good for gout.

Other diet tips for avoiding gout, which can cause constant pain for a week or several months, include restricting alcoholic beverages, eating fresh fruit like cherries, and taking coral calcium powder as a supplement. Drinking copious amounts of water is often recommended for a gout diet. Not only does water help boost the body’s alkalinity, but it also keeps the body hydrated, enabling it to flush out uric acid crystals and other toxins.

Discussion Comments

anon995197

I liked this. Good information.

Diet is so critical. and i was so tired of pills. I've been using this stuff called Real Time Pain Relief for about a year now. It's probably the best stuff I've ever used for pain in my feet and especially on my toes. I finally started sleeping at night from using it.

PinkLady4

Gout must be a very painful condition. When gobs of uric acid crystals cluster together into a part of a joint - ouch!

It's really good that many people with gout don't have to take medicine, as long as they follow some basic dietary rules, and drink lots of water.

I have heard that it's healthy to try to keep your PH level balanced,ideally toward the alkaline side. You can test your PH level by buying some litmus paper at the pharmacy and measuring what your PH level is at different times of the day. What you eat has a lot to do with determining what your PH level is.

sweetPeas

It's great to hear that a medical condition, like gout, can be kept under control by following certain dietary practices. The main idea is to keep your body's PH system balanced - running a bit to the alkaline side.

Eating a lot of fruits and vegetables, especially cherries, avoiding too much protein, drinking lots of water and avoiding soda and alcohol is really not too difficult a diet to follow.

summing

My mother eats a diet that is supposed to help with her gout. She has been doing this for a number of years and is able to keep her symptoms to a minimum.

She eats lots of fruits and vegetables, but for her the biggest part of it is what she drinks. She avoids soda and alcohol completely. On a few occasions she has cheated and her symptoms always spike up soon after. So she just doesn't touch them at all. She also drinks tons of water, almost a gallon a day. That is a lot of water for an old lady but she says it is the single best thing for her gout.

So if you have gout watch what you eat, but be sure to watch what you drink as well.

Ivan83

I have had gout for a few years now and have struggled a lot to keep my symptoms under control. I tried lots of different medications and treatments but still seemed to get the worst of it.

I finally found some relief when I made a serious effort to change my diet. Honestly, I never ate all that well. I ate a lot of meat and a lot of processed foods. One day I decided that I would go completely vegetarian and focus on fresh ingredients as much as possible.

That was six months ago and I have not felt this good in years. I am taking less medication and getting better results than I ever have before. I can't say that it was easy to give up the way I have eaten my whole life, but it has been worth it.

Post your comments
Login:
Forgot password?
Register:
    • Full fat dairy products can exacerbate gout.
      Full fat dairy products can exacerbate gout.
    • Many types of meat, especially those high in fat, can contribute to gout.
      Many types of meat, especially those high in fat, can contribute to gout.
    • Kiwis are high in potassium, which can be good for gout.
      Kiwis are high in potassium, which can be good for gout.
    • Carrot juice, which can be drunk on a gout diet.
      By: Elenathewise
      Carrot juice, which can be drunk on a gout diet.
    • Cantaloupe is good for those on a gout diet.
      By: Malyshchyts Viktar
      Cantaloupe is good for those on a gout diet.
    • Cherries contain flavonoids, which may help relieve the inflammation of gout.
      By: Harris Shiffman
      Cherries contain flavonoids, which may help relieve the inflammation of gout.
    • Green tea can help the body's alkalinity.
      By: NataliTerr
      Green tea can help the body's alkalinity.
    • Apple cider vinegar is a popular home remedy for gout.
      By: Comugnero Silvana
      Apple cider vinegar is a popular home remedy for gout.
    • High potassium foods like bananas can be helpful during a gout diet.
      By: Celso Diniz
      High potassium foods like bananas can be helpful during a gout diet.
    • Drinking eight glasses of water a day helps eliminate uric acid from the body.
      By: anyaivanova
      Drinking eight glasses of water a day helps eliminate uric acid from the body.
    • If a gout flare up occurs, aspirin can be taken to reduce pain and inflammation.
      By: blueskies9
      If a gout flare up occurs, aspirin can be taken to reduce pain and inflammation.
    • A coral calcium powder supplement can help avoid gout.
      By: Orlando Bellini
      A coral calcium powder supplement can help avoid gout.
    • Black cherry juice is recommended for the gout diet, as it has a high pH value.
      By: Swetlana Wall
      Black cherry juice is recommended for the gout diet, as it has a high pH value.