A dietician's guide to keeping gout out

Gout, a painful form of arthritis, occurs when high levels of uric acid in the blood cause crystals to form and accumulate around a joint.

Emphasise on eating complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables than simple sugars. (Representational image)

HYDERABAD: Uric acid is produced when the body breaks down a chemical called purine. Purine occurs naturally in your body, but it’s also found in certain foods.

Uric acid moves through the blood to the kidneys. The kidneys then add that uric acid to the urine and eliminate it from the body.

Gout, a painful form of arthritis, occurs when high levels of uric acid in the blood cause crystals to form and accumulate around a joint.

The more fluid is flushed out of the body, the lesser the uric acid accumulation. Since in kidney failure, as fluid is restricted, dialysis is the only means to remove uric acid.

However, consuming a diet low in purines will also help in not producing additional uric acid.

 Suitable diet

• Emphasise on eating complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables than simple sugars
• Avoid red meat and choose lean meat, skinless poultry and fish 
• Meat substitutes made from soya bean, textured vegetable protein, tofu, eggs and low-fat cheese can be used as sources of protein
• Avoid deep fried foods, sugary beverages and high-fat desserts. Limit usage of butter, margarine and salad oils to 2-3 tsp/day
• Avoid alcohol strictly
• Obese individuals must lose weight to control the accumulation of uric acid in joints

(Apeksha Ekbote, chief dietician, NephroPlus)