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Hello Gout Education,
The Gout Education Society is committed to raising awareness of gout—the most common form of inflammatory arthritis and how to manage it for the long term. The Society offers a variety of free, unbiased resources at GoutEducation.org to help you learn more about gout and treatment options.
Living with gout means making healthy choices. Between diet modifications and lifestyle changes, living a healthier life is a key component to managing the disease. While uric acid-lowering medication is the first line of defense against preventing future gout flares and other health issues, remaining active and making diet modifications is also important. By implementing a two-pronged treatment regimen, those with gout can see painful flares become less frequent, while also attacking the root cause of the disease: excess uric acid levels.
Read on to learn more about the role of and examples of diet and lifestyle modifications that the Society recommends discussing with your doctor.
Dietary Modifications
Eating a healthy diet is key to improving one’s overall health and wellbeing. This is especially important for those with gout, as improving one’s health can help curb some of the symptoms of the disease. While there is no official “gout diet,” the Society recommends a few options that promote foods lower in purines, fat and sodium:
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Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Diet – This diet focuses on foods that help lower blood pressure, one of the metabolic conditions that can impact gout.
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Mediterranean Diet – This diet focuses foods avoiding foods known to trigger flares and replace them with vegetables, fruits and fish.
Lifestyle Changes
Once diagnosed with gout, it's more important than ever to remain active and keep body weight to a healthy level. Making lifestyle modifications can be a critical piece of the puzzle and the Society recommends the following:
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Exercise - The CDC recommends that adults should get at least 30 minutes of moderate activity most days of the week.
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Maintain Body Weight and Other Benchmarks - Those who are obese are three times more likely to develop gout than those with a normal body weight. Other healthy benchmarks to keep in mind include a cholesterol of 200 mg/dL or below and a blood pressure of 130/80 or less.
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Staying Hydrated - Drink at least 64 ounces of water per day to help the body transport nutrients/waste and cushion joints/tissues. Research also shows that staying hydrated can guard against kidney stones, which are common affliction associated with gout.
To learn more about making healthy lifestyle choices when living with gout, please see our Gout Diet & Lifestyle page.
Have any questions or need resources? Email us: [email protected].
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