Gout Diet

As more and more people are becoming more aware of the importance of their health, there are a number of diets being released that are designed to help people recover from medical conditions.  Considering the advances in nutrition and its impact on a person’s health, there are now so many special diets that are available that are designed to treat disease.

One popular diet is the gout diet.  The Gout Diet is a diet that is designed to help people recover from the disease, gout.  Gout is a disease that is caused by a disorder in a person’s uric acid metabolism.  It is one of the most painful arthritic conditions, and gout can result in an increased blood level of uric acid that directly affects a person’s cartilage and the tissue surrounding a person’s joints.  Some of the more common symptoms of gout are: sudden bouts of swelling and inflammation in the joints.  It generally attacks the big toe initially but can spread to other parts of a person’s body.

There are four stages of gout that are differentiated by how severe the condition is.  The earliest stage of gout is asymptomatic gout, which does not require any treatment.  The second stage is acute gouty arthritis, which the symptoms of gout appear in early acute attacks that generally go on for three to ten days.  The third stage of gout is interval gout and this is the stage in which gout attacks appear without any symptoms between the gout attacks.  The most debilitating stage of gout is chronic tophaceous gout, which can result in permanent damage to a person’s joints and even their kidneys.

To reduce the escalation of gout, it is highly recommended that if you suffer from gout that you go on the gout diet.  Gout is caused by an excessive amount of uric acid in the bloodstream, which is the result of a breakdown of purines.  While purines can be found in your body, it is also present in many foods.  As a result, the gout diet will help you maintain an ideal weight and will reduce your intake of foods that are high in purines.

When you go on the gout diet, you should restrict your consumption of foods that contain a high concentration of purines such as: sweetbreads, liver, sardines, anchovies, diet sodas, meat extracts, and scallops.  On the flip side, the gout diet promotes the consumption of food like whole grains, fruits, and vegetables due to their high content of complex carbohydrates.  Additionally, the gout diet recommends eating food that are low in protein and fat.  The gout diet is high on such foods as: fresh berries, tomatoes, bananas, chocolate, coffee, tofu, food high in vitamin C like oranges and red peppers, and low-fat dairy products.