The Most Important Dietary Changes to Make When Living With Gout
Dairy products carry a lot of healthy compounds, but they can also upset your balanced diet. Full-fat dairy will probably add too many calories for weight loss, so stick to low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese and skim milk most of the time.
Drink More Water
There’s no magical elixir for a gout-free life, but water comes pretty close. Water flushes out your kidneys, diluting your urine and helping to pass uric acid more frequently. Everyone should aim to drink between eight and 16 cups of liquid each day, and at least half of that should be clean, pure water.
Sticking to all of these gout food rules will work for you in two important ways. First, you’ll develop less uric acid by taking in fewer purines, and secondly, you’ll start to shed excess weight by avoiding the most infamous high-calorie foods. Since being overweight is a huge risk factor for gout, the closer you stay to your ideal weight, the better you’ll protect yourself from painful attacks.
Best Activities to Prevent Gout Attacks
It’s no secret that regular exercise is the best complement to a healthy diet when it comes to weight loss, so begin to work some more activity into each day. You will start to shed weight relatively quickly, and with every excess pound you drop, your uric acid levels will decrease, as will your risk of comorbid disease.
Moderate intensity exercise is helpful for heart health, energy levels and strength. Most adults should try to fit a half hour of exercise into each day, making sure to keep the intensity high enough to break a sweat.
Depending on your current fitness level, that could mean walking up a hill, running around the block or cycling. Listen to your body, and your doctor, for cues to push harder or pull back.
Supplement Wisely
There’s no replacement for a well-balanced diet, but sometimes you could use a little boost, and this is where supplements come into play. In the case of gout, two compounds have proven especially helpful:
Vitamin C
Some studies have shown that vitamin C can reduce the frequency of gout attacks, since it lowers uric acid levels. Cherries are particularly helpful sources (they are known to decrease inflammation, too), but a daily supplement (500mg up to 1000mg) is another option.
Coffee
It’s known for its caffeine, but other components in coffee might be even more useful for gout patients. Research shows the more coffee you consume, the lower your uric acid levels.
Since this effect was not found in tea drinkers, scientists believe the improvement comes from coffee’s antioxidant levels and positive impact on insulin resistance.
Patience and flexibility are two of the most valuable virtues you could have when dealing with a chronic disease. If your current gout diet isn’t working as well as you had hoped, it’s time to experiment with some healthy changes.
Can’t commit to a full workout each and every day? Try splitting it up into 10 or 15 minutes bursts of activity here and there. The more open you are to trying new approaches, the more likely you’ll land on the perfect plan for your body and lifestyle.
