Avoid These Foods if You Have Gout

Gout is an especially painful kind of arthritis that can occur anywhere but most commonly affects your feet. This condition happens when there’s too much uric acid buildup in your body.

While many things can contribute to your risk of developing gout, one direct contributor to this ailment is your diet. When you eat a lot of foods that are high in purines, it worsens your gout.

Our team at AllCare Foot & Ankle Center explains how your diet relates to your gout and how to make the necessary lifestyle changes to lessen the severity of your symptoms.

How purines affect gout

Purines are chemicals that are found in many common foods and drinks. When your body breaks down the purines, uric acid is created as a by-product. The more purines you consume, the higher the uric acid content is going to be in your body. 

The idea behind lessening gout pain is to eat a low-purine diet, thereby lowering uric acid levels which should decrease the number of flare-ups you have and any joint damage as a result.

Foods that worsen gout

So what foods should you be avoiding? Here are some foods that are high in purines that you may want to consider cutting out of your diet:

• Sugar
• High fructose corn syrup
• Alcohol
• Organ meats such as liver and kidneys
• Red meats 
• Game meats like veal and venison
• Yeast

By keeping these foods out of your diet, you can lessen the amount of painful arthritic pain attacks.

Foods to add to your diet

The good news is that there are plenty of options when it comes to items that are low in purines. There are even some foods and drinks that can lower the amount of uric acid in your body. 

Some of these include:

• Milk
• Coffee
• Water
• Cherries
• Whole grains
• Vegetables
• Beans and legumes

Having foods and drinks high in vitamin C as part of your diet can also lessen your risk of gout attacks.

By maintaining a low-purine diet, you not only lessen the amount of uric acid in your body, but it also may help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Both of these factors can severely lessen your gout pain. 

Next steps

If you’re looking for additional treatment to use in conjunction with a low-purine diet, you can contact our expert team at AllCare Foot & Ankle Center for arthritic pain relief. 

To schedule an appointment with us, call our office in Arlington or Dallas, Texas, or use our online booking tool today.