by Rich Rollend

Created on: September 26, 2010

To effectively manage any disease, choosing the right food to eat is very critical. This ensures that the patients remains healthy, and brings the efficacy of any medication to the fullest. This is very much applicable to gout – a disease that's highly attributable to the food eaten.

Hyperuricemia is a condition of extremely high level of uric acid in the body. The body system is capable of breaking down the uric acid into the blood, but this is hindered when it is high. This causes the uric acid to form into needle-like crystals that accumulates in the joints. The anti-bodies take this as a foreign element in the body; pain and inflammation is caused when the anti-bodies attack the crystals.

The food you eat can increase the uric acid level in the body, which can lead to hyperuricemia, causing gout. It’s important that you are aware of your food intake, to avoid this painful medical condition. The low purine diet is highly recommended for every patient, but those who have yet to acquire the illness would do well to consider taking the diet.

Fruits and vegetables come first on the list of the food that can be taken daily. But some vegetables should be taken in moderation, including asparagus, cauliflower, mushroom and spinach. Dairy foods are next in the list, with milk being highly regarded to lower the risk of gout.

In addition to the vegetables noted above, poultry, seafoods and oatmeal should also be eaten in moderation. Beans, lentils, fish (except mackerels) and beverages complete the list.

There’s quite a number of food that should be avoided in a low purine diet. Mussels, liver, yeast and sweetbreads are a no-no in this diet. Anchovies, sardines and fishes belonging to the herring family complete the list, along with mackerels. Peanuts, cola drinks, spinach, nuts and strawberries are considered oxalate rich foods and form part of the group of foods that one should veer away from.

You may think you’re very much limited to the food that you can eat with this diet. But with careful planning, you will find a huge selection of food and recipes that can be cooked to meet the requirements. Consulting a dietitian can help you come up with the strategy in observing the low purine diet. Cooking your food should be part of your strategy, as eating out will leave you with limited choices and may tempt you to eat food that should be avoided.

The diet aims to lower the uric acid level and treat gout. Strict observance is highly recommended to help the patient achieve a healthier body. Until an acceptable level of uric acid is achieved and sustained, it’s important to be mindful of the foods that should be avoided.

In addition to food, other food supplements can also be taken to aid the treatment. Vitamin C and other nutritional supplements containing glucosamine, et al. should also be considered when treating gout. But aside from diet, a total healthy lifestyle should be adopted to achieve success in avoiding the attack.

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