For gout (or gouty arthritis), doctors tend to focus primarily on the diet. The importance of the diet is undeniable, the approaches and recommendations are changing, but the diet is still considered as part of the preventive treatment of exacerbations of gout to minimize its recurrence.
Joint loss with gout is always an "explosion", acute pain and a rapid increase in inflammation. In a short period of time, illness can make life miserable. A responsible attitude towards the diet can prolong the asymptomatic course of gout for years, that is, reduce the frequency of crises, as well as the risk of later development of the disease.
Women suffer from gout 10 times less than men and often after menopause. The reasons for the occurrence of this disease are many: genetic predisposition, renal failure, obesity. In addition, as a rule, gout occurs in people after 40-50 years. But the availability of food, especially fast food, and a sedentary lifestyle contribute to the "rejuvenation" of the disease.
Basic nutrition rules for gout
To gain a clear understanding of the principles of nutrition, you must remember the main cause of gout. The disease is characterized by high levels of uric acid (sodium urate) in the blood. Over time, it accumulates in the joints and, subsequently, in the muscle tissues, forming tophi (cavities filled with solid deposits), resulting in kidney stones. Uric acid enters the body with the help of purines: protein elements in our food.
Some chemistry
Purine degradation is a common biochemical reaction that produces urates. They leave the body with urine, that is, they are excreted by the kidneys. Urate is a natural antioxidant, a substance that prevents premature degradation of cell tissue.
What happens to gout? The urate level increases dramatically and the substance begins to crystallize in the joints.
The surface of the articular head has a smooth cartilaginous structure. Sharp crystals, of course, damage. The person begins to experience severe pain when moving the limbs. The inflammatory process begins.
Basic diet
From a brief chemical analysis, it is clear that purines are formed from the breakdown of their own protein compounds and enter the bloodstream. Therefore, if possible, you need to exclude protein products from the diet.
Reduce meat and fish, as this food increases purines. There should be no beef, lamb or pork on the diet table. Large amounts of salt must be discarded. If possible, it is best to completely remove salt and hot spices from the diet. This already has to do with the preservation of the kidneys, since with gout the kidneys are under direct threat.
As with any diet, alcohol should be avoided for gout. Any alcohol (beer - mainly for gout) is contraindicated for you, as it slows the excretion of uric acid by the kidneys, which contributes to its accumulation in the blood. A "low in purine" diet will help to minimize or eliminate the appearance of gout.
Proper nutrition for gout - 50% successful treatment
Following certain dietary guidelines, you will slow the progression of the disease. The gout will have no complications.
To make it easier to imagine the purine content of products, we offer examples:
- Bran bread - 24 mg; Vegetables - 105 mg; Herring - 128 mg;
- Liver of animals with large horns - 300 mg;
- Fatty fish from the salmon family - 100 mg;
- Chicken meat - 110 mg;
- Rabbit meat - 65 mg;
- Tongue and meat of cattle - 72-100 mg.
You can create this table yourself by listing the products you love. They must contain a minimum amount of purines.
Special dietary guidelines
It is recommended to remove all fried foods from the diet and switch to low salt, boiled, cooked and baked foods. Unfortunately, fish and meat broths will also have to be removed. When preparing these rich soups, a significant portion of the purines goes into the broth.
It is useful to organize fasting days, as with any other diet. In addition to getting rid of leg pain, you will lose those extra pounds. This is a good bonus for maintaining your figure (and not just for women). The essence of fasting days is to consume only vegetables and fruits. Divide the meal into 5 to 6 parts and eat up to 1. 5 kg of vegetables and fruits. If there is no desire for that fast day, just buy low-fat kefir. Drink throughout the day too. We advise you to follow this system at least once a week.
During an exacerbation of gout, it is best to "unload" the body every other day. As soon as the inflammation subsides, you can return to your normal eating routine.
Important!You can't starve to death! As much as you want, don't skip a single day without eating.
Food for gout
You can obtain competent dietary advice from your doctor or nutritionist. This article provides general information and nutritional guidelines for people with gout. However, each organism is unique, so it is worth choosing a list of foods and an individual nutritional scheme. Keep a food diary.
List of foods that can be consumed or with limited use
A list of foods that can be eaten and that should be limited is presented in a list below.
- Lean meat from the diet: rabbit, turkey, chicken;
- 3-4 times a week - mineral waters still alkaline. For example, Narzan. Pay attention to the sodium content in this bottled water, it should be low;
- Fruit drinks, dried fruit jams, green tea;
- Any cereals;
- Eggs;
- Lean fish: pollack, hake, pike. All the fish in the river;
- Dairy products: kefir, fermented milk, sour cream, milk, but with a reduced fat content - no more than 2. 5%;
- Vegetable oil;
- Potatoes;
- Rye or bran bread;
- Low-fat and unsalted cheeses;
- Cooked or raw vegetables.
- Radish, eggplant, parsnip;
- Fruits can be eaten fresh;
- Berries;
- Homemade bakery products;
- Vegetables, asparagus, rhubarb, spinach. These plants contain a high content of oxalic acid, which retains urates in the body;
- Mushrooms
- Nuts
Food basket prohibited for gout in women and men
In the gout diet, restrictions refer to protein foods, it is recommended to focus on carbohydrates in the diet. What about those who are overweight and the question of how to lose weight is constantly on the agenda? And also for those who have diabetes? On the other hand, these people require a low carbohydrate diet.
A low carbohydrate diet and a low protein diet are two mutually exclusive diets. Which diet to choose? In such cases, it is advisable to limit yourself precisely to carbohydrates and the first three items on the list of prohibited foods. Because? We will summarize in the next chapter.
We have listed some of the allowed products. The general list of prohibited products is as follows:
- Alcoholic and carbonated drinks. All drinks that can be called "tonics", packaged juices;
- Fish and meat broths
- Seafood: shrimp, mussels, squid
- By-products: liver, tongue, kidneys, heart;
- Confectionery products such as: ice cream, baked goods, desserts with cottage cheese;
- Foods that contain large amounts of salt;
- Canned meat and fish. In general, it is worth giving up canned food;
- Fatty dairy products: cream, sour cream, cheese;
- Salted fish, sausages, sausages, ham and other semi-finished products. These products contain harmful additives and preservatives. For example, monosodium glutamate is usually added to enhance the taste;
General Principle of the Diet
So why, in the face of such clear rules, there is still the possibility of not being strict with your products, especially for women? Why, if you need to choose between different diets, give preference to protein? Although they are proteins, as we discovered, they are the cause of the appearance of uric acid in the blood.
Important!Uric acid levels are maintained effectively with medications.
As a reminder, the gout diet is part of preventive treatment. Its second component is taking medications that reduce the formation of uric acid. Now, these drugs are so effective that when increasing the dosage, the doctor needs to monitor compliance with the target values of uric acid in the blood. The better you follow a gout diet, the lower the dosage of the medication. And the drugs are taken for many years, because the disease is chronic.
Doctors generally recommend the following in relation to nutrition:
- Your BMI must be between 18, 5 and 25
- if your BMI is over 25, lose weight! If you lose weight by 5 to 7 kg, you will significantly reduce the development of gout
- eat a Mediterranean diet
Also:
- frequent and fractional meals in small portions up to 6 times a day;
- energy value of about 1500-1800 kcal per day;
- minimum amount of table salt and foods containing purines;
- needs to drink about 2 liters of water a day (especially for those who already have kidney stones);
- fasting is prohibited.
Gout-fighting products
The following are considered folk remedies for gout:
- pineapple;
- turmeric;
- cherry juice;
- lemon; ginger;
- capsicum.
Try green tea with ginger. The drink has the desired "diuretic effect". Green tea has proven to be an anticancer agent, which is also good. But, the truth is that this is a completely different story.
Summary
The listed foods that are classified as "prohibited", even in small doses, aggravate gout. Remember that this disease has no cure, so you need to completely rethink your attitude towards food. Thus, you can live in peace without joint pain.
In open sources, women find healthy and tasty recipes that are deliberately not posted here so as not to overload information. Make the right food and diet for gout your lifestyle. Be healthy!