Friday, 04/17/2026
Health
Living with Gout — Tips to manage gout and avoiding triggers
Update: 02/08/2016
Gout once known as the ‘disease of kings’ due to its\r\nassociation with alcohol and rich diet has now become an illness of the common\r\nman. But it can still leave you with a royal pain!
\r\n\r\nGout is a type ofarthritisthat is caused by high blood levels of uric\r\nacid and can be awfully painful. You may have many asymptomatic years followed\r\nby flare-ups for days to weeks. If the uric acid levels in your blood remain\r\nhigh for a long time, the condition may progress to chronic gout with more\r\nfrequent symptoms. Hard uric acid crystal (tophi) deposits may be formed which\r\ncan cause swelling and deformity. Recurrent attacks of gout can cause the\r\ndestruction of bone and cartilage.
\r\n\r\nLiving with Gout
\r\n\r\nGout is a lifelong ailment. An acute attack of gout can\r\nkeep you off your feet for a few days. But with the right management, you can\r\nbetter manage the spells of severe pain that last for days and live a healthy\r\nlife. It is more important than ever to cultivate healthy habits and make some\r\nsmart choices for a lifetime.
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Learn tokeep your gout under control. Make these\r\nfollowing changes to your diet and lifestyle to manage your gout symptoms andreduce your riskof future attacks as\r\nwell.
\r\n\r\n1. Do not miss your medication
\r\n\r\nStick to your prescribed uric acid lowering drugs. Take them regularly.\r\nKeep your painkiller drugs handy. Have them at the first sign of redness or\r\npain. It would also be helpful to learn some pain management strategies.
\r\n\r\n2. Monitor your uric acid levels
\r\n\r\nDon’t miss your follow-up appointments with your doctor. Get your blood\r\nuric acid levels checked. Keep your other co-morbid conditions like diabetes,\r\nhypertension, etc., if any, under control.
\r\n\r\n3. Make some dietary modifications
\r\n\r\nEat a well-balanced diet.Choose your foods wisely. Wrong food choices\r\ncan worsen the condition. Limit your intake of foods rich in purines like meat,\r\nsardines, mackerel, shellfish, chickpeas, etc. They increase the blood uric\r\nacid levels and worsen the gout symptoms. Avoid refined carbohydrates like\r\nwhite bread, biscuits and cookies. Say no to artificial fruit juices and soft\r\ndrinks containing high-fructose because fructose significantly increases blood\r\nuric acid levels.
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Eat a healthy diet that is low in fat content. Consume low-fat milk and\r\ncurd. Consume more of antioxidant-rich foods like grapes, pineapples, cherries,\r\nblueberries, etc. They help in flushing out uric acid and also prevent\r\ninflammation of the joints.
\r\n\r\nLower\r\nyour gout attacks with cherries!Studies say that\r\ncherries can reduce the risk of gout attacks, especially when combined with the\r\nuric-acid reducing drug, allopurinol.
\r\n\r\n4. Drink plenty of water
\r\n\r\nDrinking at least 8-10 glasses of water in a day removes\r\nthe excess uric acid from the body and reduces the risk of crystal formation in\r\nthe joints thereby reducing the risk of a painful gout attack. Increase your\r\nwater intake at the slightest hint of a possible bout.
\r\n\r\n5. Swear off tobacco and alcohol
\r\n\r\nQuit smoking and drinking. Both can worsen the symptoms of\r\ngout. Smoking interferes with your body’s metabolism. Alcohol, especially beer\r\nand wine, have the highest tendency to increase uric acid levels in the blood.\r\nConsumption of alcohol could also lead to fluid accumulation.
\r\n\r\n6. Get your body moving
\r\n\r\nAn inactive lifestyle is one of the key factors\r\nresponsible for gout. Exercise regularly. It benefits both your body and mind\r\nand can go a long way in managing the condition. It helps beat co-existent\r\nlifestyle diseases like high cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, etc.
\r\n\r\n7. Maintain a healthy weight
\r\n\r\nMaintain your body weight at a healthy level. If you are\r\noverweight or obese, it’s time you shed some kilos. But don’t go on a crash\r\ndiet. Rapid weight loss can cause ketosis and bring on a gout attack. Be\r\nsensible and aim to lose weight gradually.
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8. Avoid triggers
\r\n\r\nStay away from foods that can trigger painful gout\r\nattacks.Gout patients should avoid\r\ntomatoes.\r\nResearchers have found them to be the fourth most common trigger after seafood,\r\nalcohol and red meat.3
\r\n\r\nCertain anti- hypertensive and potassium losing diuretic\r\ndrugs can increase uric acid levels. Avoid taking them. If you are on such\r\ndrugs, talk to your doctor about alternative options.
\r\n\r\nAcute\r\ngout attacks are experienced most commonly at night. It is speculated\r\nthat night-time dehydration, lower body temperature, or a nocturnal incline of\r\ncortisol levels may be the contributing factors.4Prophylactic measures,\r\nespecially at night, may be more effective in preventing gout flares.
\r\n\r\nReferences:
\r\n\r\n1. Choi JW, Ford ES, Gao X, Choi HK. Sugar-sweetened soft\r\ndrinks, diet soft drinks, and serum uric acid level: the Third National Health\r\nand Nutrition Examination Survey. Arthritis Rheum. 2008 Jan 15;59(1):109-16.\r\ndoi: 10.1002/art.23245. PubMed PMID: 18163396.
\r\n\r\n2. Zhang Y, Neogi T, Chen C, Chaisson C, Hunter DJ, Choi\r\nHK. Cherry consumption and decreased risk of recurrent gout attacks. Arthritis\r\nRheum. 2012 Dec;64(12):4004-11. doi: 10.1002/art.34677. PubMed PMID: 23023818;\r\nPubMed Central PMCID: PMC3510330.
\r\n\r\n3. Flynn TJ, Cadzow M, Dalbeth N, Jones PB, Stamp LK,\r\nHindmarsh JH, Todd AS, Walker RJ, Topless R, Merriman TR. Positive association\r\nof tomato consumption with serum urate: support for tomato consumption as an\r\nanecdotal trigger of gout flares. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2015 Aug\r\n19;16:196. doi: 10.1186/s12891-015-0661-8. PubMed PMID: 26286027; PubMed\r\nCentral PMCID: PMC4541734.
\r\n\r\n4. Choi HK, Niu J, Neogi T, Chen CA, Chaisson C, Hunter D, Zhang Y.\r\nNocturnal risk of gout attacks. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2015 Feb;67(2):555-62.\r\ndoi: 10.1002/art.38917. PubMed PMID: 25504842; PubMed Central PMCID:\r\nPMC4360969.
By The Healthy Site
Dr Anitha Anchan