Gout Information

Eating healthily

Unfortunately, removing purines from the diet is known to cause a drop in uric acid levels of only 15 per cent. Healthy eating can reduce levels further; it will have the happy side effect of weight loss in people who are overweight, and it can reduce levels of triglycerides (fats) in the blood. Healthy eating can also reduce high blood pressure and the risk of both heart and kidney disease. It can therefore be of great benefit in gout.

Although it may be difficult at first to make the recommended changes, the benefit to your overall health will make the effort worthwhile. However, if you find you are unable to make great changes, don't feel guilty or despondent. Small changes are better than no changes at all - they will make a difference.

Reducing alcohol consumption

An individual's alcohol consumption is strongly linked to levels of uric acid in the blood, someone drinking moderate to high amounts of alcohol being far more likely to develop hyperuricemia than someone who doesn't drink, or drinks very little. Studies have shown that people who consume more than two units of alcohol on a regular basis have higher than average concentrations of uric acid in the blood. Obviously, some people drink rather more than two units, which has a knock-on effect on levels of uric acid.

Alcohol causes a rise in uric acid levels for the following reasons:

The metabolism of alcohol creates a chemical called lactate, which reduces the elimination of uric acid by the kidneys.
Certain properties of alcoholic drinks can pile on the pounds -in males it is generally around the middle - and carrying excess weight has its own links with hyperuricemia.
Many alcoholic beverages contain purines.

Quite often people don't realize the extent of their alcohol consumption, especially if they tend to drink a glass of wine or two with meals, then more at night socially, or while watching the TV. Drinking beer or lager socially at the pub is a way of life for many people, but they rarely count the number of pints they drink in a week. A person who abstains all week but drinks several pints of beer at the weekend is just as likely to have raised levels of uric acid as someone who drinks beer almost every night. It can be difficult to break what is often a social habit, but it should not be necessary to abstain from alcohol altogether. Try drinking more slowly and replace some of your alcoholic drinks with non-alcoholic ones. Ask your doctor to measure your uric acid levels after cutting down for a while, then decide whether you need to cut down further.

People who binge drink or drink regular amounts of alcohol tend to be overweight. This transpires because of the effect of the kilojoules in the alcohol. Cutting down, therefore, is another great way to lose weight.

Fluids

To reduce the risk of uric acid crystallizing in the joints (the cause of the severe pain in acute gout) it is important to drink plenty of fluids, obviously not including alcohol. Ideally, you should try to drink as much as 3.5 litres (6 pints) of water a day. It is fine to include other fluids in this amount, such as fruit juices and herbal teas. However, as caffeine can stress adrenal glands that are overworked in any case where disease is present, it should be consumed in moderation, if at all.

A problem for many is finding an acceptable alternative to caffeine. Coffee, tea, cocoa and cola drinks can be replaced by fruit and vegetable juices and herbal teas - green tea is very good, as is rooibosch (redbush) tea.

If you are trying to lose weight, bear in mind that many soft drinks contain large amounts of sugar and should be avoided.