Eating foods high in uric acid can cause an attack of gout/the gout/gouty arthritis, and if you or anyone you know has ever had one of these attacks you know that they can be quite painful. Ironically, what makes this condition somewhat of an oddity is how it targets the big toe joint. As if this isn't bad enough, attacks can impact other areas as well such as the knee, wrist, elbow, ankle, Achilles tendon, and over time the kidneys or other organs. Joints can be permanently damaged over time if tophi (hard lumps of urate crystals) are allowed to build up in the joint lining.

Specific foods high in uric acid can cause or be a contributing factor for gout. But foods are not the only major cause. Other causes include renal failure, radiation treatment, being as little as 15% overweight, lead poisoning, hypothyroidism, blood disorders, diuretics, and large doses of niacin (nicotinic acid).

Uric acid is a waste product produced when cells are broken down in the body or when foods containing purines are consumed. Most often an attack of gout/gouty arthritis is a simple case of the kidneys not being able to eliminate enough uric acid to avoid it being deposited elsewhere.

Are the kidneys simply not functioning well enough or are they simply overwhelmed by the amount of waste products in the blood? Only a series of test can pinpoint the cause, nevertheless it is likely that foods high uric acid content are at the very least a contributing factor in both first time attacks or recurrent attacks and should be eliminated, or moderated.

In some ways food, gout, and a healthy diet are a dichotomy. Some of the foods which are generally considered to be the most healthy are the foods high in uric acid. To start with all meat, poultry, and fish contain some purines but not all meat, poultry, and fish are created equal in their uric acid producing potential. The most dangerous ones are herring, sardines, mackerel, anchovies, asparagus, all organ meats especially liver, mussels, mushrooms, meat gravies, brains, spinach, beans, oatmeal, and cauliflower. Right now you are probably thinking that you will likely starve, due to lack of decent food choices, or be forced to eat bananas, rice, yogurt, soy, and nuts from now on. Hold on, let's talk about this for a minute or two before you join a vegan support group.

Remember when we talked about this condition generally being about high uric acid levels in blood? Perhaps you are just overdoing it by eating too much of a good thing. So use some discretion before ordering that pizza with spinach, mystery meats, anchovies, and mushrooms. Also, if this is the only pizza on the menu make sure to drink plenty of water, avoid alcohol, and take into account whether your medication regime includes any urine concentrating drugs such as diuretics.

While avoiding recurrent attacks may be difficult there are three steps that can be implemented at home to reduce your chances of having a gout attack. First, reduce the intake of purine laden foods (foods high uric acid content) such as shellfish and organ meats; second, drink plenty of fresh water (6 eight ounce glasses a day); and last but not least implement an alternative gout remedy containing the natural ingredients turmeric and milk thistle. By implementing these three steps you will have made great strides on the path to reducing elevated uric acid levels and avoiding future attacks.