For those who have gout, it is extremely important for you to know the type of lifestyle that you should attain and watch what you eat.
Gout can be found in men and women, in fact, 8.3 million people or for better terms 4% of the population have gout. With something so common, it is imperative to know what to do if you have gout, know what it is, how to eat and what to do to help reduce your risk of getting gout.
What Exactly Is Gout?
The gout diet is designed to help you reach a healthy weight, assist you in changing your eating habits and gain control over uric acid levels.
If you suffer from gout, your physician has already told you that you need to change a few things. If you do not change your diet and other areas of life, gout can lead to kidney problems, heart attack and stroke.
The goal of the gout diet is to get you active by requiring you to exercise and drink a lot of water throughout the day. Doctors recommend patients to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily. When drinking a lot of water, you are helping your body remove uric acid from the bloodstream.
What Is the Gout Diet, and Should I Be on It?
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The gout diet is designed to help you reach a healthy weight, assist you in changing your eating habits and gain control over uric acid levels.
If you suffer from gout, your physician has already told you that you need to change a few things. If you do not change your diet and other areas of life, gout can lead to kidney problems, heart attack and stroke.
The goal of the gout diet is to get you active by requiring you to exercise and drink a lot of water throughout the day. Doctors recommend patients to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily. When drinking a lot of water, you are helping your body remove uric acid from the bloodstream.
How We Chose Our Ratings
Since the gout diet is very specific, we wanted to make sure that we give you the best foods and recipes that came highly recommended. Analyzing cookbooks, magazines, medical forums and customer reviews, these foods and recipes are great for the gout diet.
What Is the Gout Diet?
When it comes to gout you have to avoid many foods and drinks. The diet is very strict because most foods contain high fructose corn syrup and purines. Both of which can increase the risk of getting gout, and if you have gout currently, is the reason for it to get worse. There are certain foods to eat and certain foods to avoid to maintain a healthy gout diet.
Foods and Drinks to Avoid
Because the body already has levels of uric acid, you have to avoid foods that contain high levels of purine. Here are some foods to avoid:
These foods have a very high trace of purine. Avoiding these foods will help decrease gout attacks. Studies show that when eating red meats that have high levels of purine in it are responsible for the 21% increase of gout in men over 40 years-old.
Foods and Drinks to Avoid
Because the gout diet is so strict you have to focus on foods that have lower-purine levels. Following a low-fructose diet includes avoiding and or limiting table salt. Here are some foods you can enjoy:
- 1Nuts
- 2Fresh vegetables
- 3Fresh fruits
- 4Grains
- 5Low-fat or non-fat dairy products
- 6Water
- 7Occasional wine
When it comes to skim milk and low-fat yogurt, they have been proven to decrease the risk by providing protection against gout. Maintaining a healthy diet will help control uric acid and purine levels.
Typical Food Menu for Gout
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Watching what you eat is a reoccurring theme when talking about gout. The Mayo Clinic shares a sample menu of what a usual day would look like for someone who is on a gout diet.
Breakfast
Lunch
Snack
Dinner
A typical day in the gout diet can seem restricting, but it does not have to be. The purpose of the diet is to help decrease the limit of uric acid production and increase in its elimination. There are a few recipes that can help you enjoy the gout diet.
Gout Approved Recipes
Sticking to the diet does not mean that the flavor has to be gone. Health.com shares a variety of gout approved recipes. Your taste buds will thank you as Health.com shows you how to keep it fun in the kitchen while keeping your uric acids low.
Pumpkin Pancakes
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These pancakes have beta-carotene in them thanks to the pumpkin. This may help reduce the development of certain types of cancer and protect against heart disease. This recipe can make 4 pancakes, here is what you will need to make these amazing pumpkin pancakes:
Ingredients:
How to Make it:
- 1In a large bowl whisk together: pumpkin, baking soda, egg yolk, yogurt and flour.
- 2In another bowl whisk: salt and egg whites; then fold it into pumpkin mixture.
- 3In a large skillet coated with cooking spray, spoon in 1/3 cup of the batter.
- 4Flip when tops are covered with bubbles and edges are slightly brown.
- 5Drizzle with honey or sugar-free syrup
Be cautious of the sugar levels in the honey and syrup. Remember that on the gout diet it is imperative that you watch your sugar levels.
Blood Orange and Duck Confit Salad
Watching what types of meat, you consume is a part of being on the gout diet. Duck is one of the better meat options to choose if case you get tired of chicken. This blood orange and duck confit salad is one that you have to try, here is what you will need:
Ingredients:
How to Make it:
- 1 In a small bowl mix together: vinegar, orange juice, mustard and oil. Whisk well, then whisk in salt and pepper
- 2In a large bowl mix together: shredded duck, salad mixture, orange sections and hazelnuts.
- 3Drizzle with vinaigrette and serve.
If you are not a fan of duck, you can switch it out. The best thing about these recipes is that they leave room for self-modifications. Maybe replace the duck with chicken, or no duck at all, it is up to you.
Lemon-and-Sage Roasted Chicken
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Chicken and vegetables are approved for the gout diet. This roasted lemon-and-sage chicken recipe is full of flavor and takes under two hours to make. Here is what you will need:
Ingredients:
Extras that you will need:
How to Make it:
- 1Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- 2Take about 6 of the lemon slices and sage leaves, place it under the skin of the chicken. For the remaining lemon slices, put them into the cavity. Tie together the legs with twine and tuck under the wings.
- 3Take a teaspoon of oil over the chicken. Take out the roasting pan and place the chicken in it, setting it in the lower third rack of the oven. Keep there for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the thermometer reads 165 degrees. When done, take out of the oven and let it rest for at least 15 minutes.
- 4While that is cooling, cut the root of the vegetables into matchsticks
- 5On a baking pan use the remaining oil and thyme and toss with the potatoes.
- 6Roast for 45 minutes or until tender.
This lemon-and-sage chicken can be enjoyed by the entire family. You do not have to be singled out in eating a certain way while having gout. Make this for everyone to enjoy.
Vanilla Bean Pudding
Since watching your sugar and dairy intake is a must, who says that you still can’t enjoy an amazing dessert that is also gout approved. Here is what you will need for this tasty vanilla bean pudding recipe:
Ingredients:
How to Make it:
- 1Pour milk in medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add them to the milk and bring to a boil.
- 2In a large bowl combine: sugar, cornstarch and salt
- 3In another bowl mix half-and-half and egg yolks.
- 4Add in the sugar mixture into the half-and-half mixture.
- 5Gradually add in half of the hot milk mixture into sugar mixture, return hot milk to pan and boil.
- 6Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat.
- 7Add in butter stir until it is melted.
- 8Remove vanilla bean and throw it away.
- 9Have two bowls, one filled with ice and the other empty. Make sure the empty bowl is small enough to fit inside the own filled with ice.
- 10Spoon in pudding to the empty bowl and place it in the ice bowl, leaving it for 15 minutes or until pudding cools. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill.
Health.com shares an even better substitute if you are not a vanilla bean fan. You can also switch out some minor ingredients if you are a fan of coconut.
Buyer’s Guide
Having gout requires you to be extra cautious with the foods that you consume. When it comes to buying foods, you want to pay close attention to the label. Watch the amount of sodium and sugar that is included in each food your purchase.
Overall, the gout diet is strict, but it does not have to be scary. You can do a basic gout diet like the one shared at the Mayo Clinic, or you can spice it up.
You already have gout, there is no reason why it has to restrict you from the joys of food. Doing the recipes that were gout-approved and doing some more research on what to eat and how to pair it is a great idea.
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