Gout and diet: the latest research
What causes gout?
The symptoms of gout which include painful and inflamed joints particularly of the hands and feet, are primarily caused when there is a build-up in the body of a compound called uric acid.
As certain compounds called purines, which are breakdown products of nucleoproteins, form uric acid when they are in turn broken down by the body. The uric acid accumulates in the blood (hyperuricaemia) and is then deposited as uric acid crystals in joints causing swelling and pain.
The most important research results are as follows:
Intakes of red meat should still be limited both to avoid increases in uric acid levels and excessive intakes of saturated fat which can also raised insulin levels and increase the risk of heart disease.
Legumes (canned or cooked dry beans, peas, lentils or soya) are no longer regarded as harmful to individuals with gout and researchers advise that patients can eat vegetable protein, legumes, as well as nuts, and other vegetables.
Surprisingly drinking standard coffee or decaffeinated coffee was found to lower uric acid levels. This result was not obtained with tea or other beverages containing caffeine, so that the researchers concluded that another component of coffee and not caffeine, has this lowering effect on uric acid levels. This does not mean that gout sufferers should drink endless cups of coffee all day long, but a moderate intake of 2-3 cups of coffee is allowed.
The use of low-fat milk and dairy products (yoghurt, cottage cheese) helped to lower uric acid levels and it is recommended that gout patients should have at least 2 servings of low-fat dairy or milk a day.
Fruit juices and fructose (which is sometimes used instead of sugar or sucrose to sweeten foods, particularly diabetic products) raised uric acid levels significantly. The use of fruit juices and fructose-rich foods is regarded as an important risk factor for the development of gout and patients should limit their intakes of fruit juice and fructose-sweetened foods.
Alcohol increases uric acid levels because it reduces the excretion of urates via the kidneys and also boosts the production of urate. Researchers did not identify any difference between the effect of alcohol in wine, beer or spirits. If you suffer from severe gout it is, therefore, a good idea to either cut out all alcohol or not to have more than one alcoholic drink a day.
Body weight and an increased BMI were signficantly related to gout. Men with a BMI exceeding 27.5 (overweight range) were exposed to a 16-fold higher risk of gout than men with a BMI of 20 (low normal range)
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