Gout is a painful form of arthritis that occurs when high levels of uric acid in the blood lead to the formation of crystals in the joints. While diet alone is not a cure for gout, dietary modifications, alongside prescribed medications, can play a significant role in managing the condition, reducing the frequency of gout attacks, and improving overall health. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of dietary recommendations for individuals with gout, incorporating the latest research and expert opinions.
Understanding Gout and Uric Acid
Gout arises from hyperuricemia, a condition characterized by elevated uric acid levels in the blood. Uric acid is a natural byproduct of the breakdown of purines, chemical compounds found in both the body and certain foods. When uric acid levels are too high, crystals can form and accumulate in the joints, triggering inflammation, pain, swelling, redness, and stiffness characteristic of gout attacks. These attacks often occur suddenly and severely, typically affecting a single joint, most commonly the big toe. Over time, uncontrolled uric acid levels can lead to the formation of lumps called tophi stones, which can cause joint damage.
The Role of Diet in Gout Management
Dietary changes can help manage gout by limiting the amount of uric acid the body produces and helping the body get rid of it. People with gout who follow a diet to help with gout most often still need medicine to manage pain and to reduce levels of uric acid. Following a gout-focused diet, cutting calories and getting regular exercise also can help you get to and stay at a healthy weight.
General Dietary Principles for Gout Management
Eating to manage gout includes moderate portions of healthy foods. The following principles are crucial:
Weight Loss
Being overweight may raise the risk of getting gout. Losing weight may lower the risk. Research suggests that cutting calories and losing weight may lower uric acid levels and cut the number of gout attacks. This is true even without a purine-restricted diet. An obese person is three times more likely to develop gout than someone with a healthier body weight. Avoid crash diets, since fast or extreme weight loss can increase the amount of uric acid in the body. High-protein diets that contain high-purine foods may also be a problem for people with gout.
Read also: Is Carnivore Diet Good for Gout?
Complex Carbohydrates
To get more of these, eat more fruits, such as berries, apples, peaches and cantaloupe. Also eat more vegetables and whole grains.
Staying Hydrated
Many dietitians recommend consuming at least 64 ounces of water daily and more if you are exercising. Water helps the body transport nutrients and waste, regulates body temperature and cushions joints and tissues. Research also suggests that drinking adequate water might guard against kidney stones and constipation. Avoid sports drinks sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup. Staying hydrated is one of the best and easiest ways to help manage gout. It helps kidneys flush out excess uric acid, lowering the chances of crystal buildup in the joints.
Healthier Fats
Cut back on fats that are most often solid at room temperature. These are saturated fats.
Lean Proteins
Choose: Plant-based proteins, chicken (in moderation), or tofu. Lentils, beans, tofu, and chickpeas are excellent sources of protein for people with gout. They are rich in fiber, antioxidants, and plant compounds that may help reduce inflammation and support kidney health. While these foods contain moderate levels of purines, plant-based proteins do not raise the risk of gout the way red and organ meat does.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C may help lower uric acid levels.
Read also: Printable Gout Diet
Coffee
Some research suggests that coffee may be linked with a lower risk of gout. Drinking coffee may not be OK if you have other medical conditions. Caffeinated coffee may be beneficial.
Cherries
Eating more fruit, especially cherries, berries, and citrus fruits, may help reduce the risk of gout flares. This study found that cherries, in particular, have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that can lower uric acid levels and prevent flare-ups.
Foods to Limit or Avoid
Organ and Glandular Meats
Don't eat meats such as liver, kidney and sweetbreads. Avoid: Liver, kidney, sweetbreads, and large portions of red meat. Beef, pork, lamb, and organ meats, like liver, kidneys, and sweetbreads, are very high in purines. Eating large amounts of these foods can raise uric acid levels and increase the risk of gout attacks.
Red Meat
Beef, pork, and lamb should be consumed in moderation due to their high purine content.
Most Seafood
Some types of seafood are higher in purines than are other types. These include anchovies, shellfish, sardines and codfish. While fish can be a healthy addition to other diets, these options are best limited for people with gout. Seafood, especially anchovies, sardines, mackerel, scallops, and shellfish, is high in purines and has been linked to gout flares.
Read also: Comprehensive guide to DASH and gout
Alcohol
Beer and distilled liquors are linked with a higher risk of getting gout and having more attacks. Don't drink alcohol during gout attacks. Studies show that alcohol, especially beer, is a trigger for gout attacks. Alcohol interrupts the body’s ability to get rid of uric acid, and beer contains purines that can raise uric acid levels.
Sugar, Especially High-Fructose Corn Syrup
Limit or don't eat foods sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup. These may include cereals, baked goods, salad dressings and canned soups. Too much sugar of any type may increase the risk of gout. Gout sufferers are also encouraged to reduce high-fructose corn syrup. Fructose is a naturally occurring simple sugar found in fruit, vegetables, and honey. Many fruits have naturally occurring high fructose levels, so they should also be limited to one or two cups per day. However, in the typical American diet, high-fructose corn syrup is added to many foods and drinks. Drinks like soda, sweetened iced tea, energy drinks, and sugary juices are high in fructose. Fructose is a type of sugar that increases uric acid production in the liver. Many of these drinks provide little nutritional value and can also contribute to obesity, another gout risk factor.
Highly Processed Foods
Processed foods high in sodium and trans fats can increase stress and inflammation in the kidneys.
Foods to Include in Your Diet
Low-Fat Dairy Products
A study in the Journal of Dairy Science found that drinking or eating more low-fat dairy and yogurt may help lower uric acid levels, reducing gout flares. Dairy also contains certain amino acids that may support the body’s ability to process and remove uric acid. Because milk is rich in these amino acids, it may play a helpful role in managing gout.
Choose: Low-fat or nonfat milk, plain yogurt, and kefir
Avoid: Full-fat dairy or sweetened dairy products, which can add extra saturated fat or sugar
Fruits and Vegetables
Eating more fruit, especially cherries, berries, and citrus fruits, may help reduce the risk of gout flares. This study found that cherries, in particular, have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that can lower uric acid levels and prevent flare-ups. While many vegetables are high in purines, studies have shown that consuming them does not increase the risk of gout.
Choose: Fresh fruits and vegetables
Avoid: Fruit juice and sugary fruit cups
*Many fruits and vegetables are high in potassium. If you have kidney disease with potassium limitations, speak with a kidney dietitian about which fruits and vegetables to add to your diet.
Whole Grains
A 2025 study in Arthritis Care & Research found that eating at least one serving of whole grain cold cereal, cooked oatmeal, or oat bran significantly lowered people’s risk of gout. That’s because whole grains are lower in purines and help regulate blood sugar. Managing blood sugar is especially important for people who have both gout and conditions like diabetes or insulin resistance.
Choose: Oatmeal, whole grain bread, brown rice, quinoa, bulgur, oat bran
Avoid: Refined grains like white bread, white rice, and sugary breakfast cereals, which can spike blood sugar and lack fiber
Legumes and Plant-Based Proteins
Lentils, beans, tofu, and chickpeas are excellent sources of protein for people with gout. They are rich in fiber, antioxidants, and plant compounds that may help reduce inflammation and support kidney health. While these foods contain moderate levels of purines, plant-based proteins do not raise the risk of gout the way red and organ meat does.
Choose: Lentils, black beans, chickpeas, edamame, tofu, and tempeh
Avoid: Eating too much red meat, poultry skin, or processed plant-based meats high in sodium and additives
Water and Unsweetened Drinks
Staying hydrated is one of the best and easiest ways to help manage gout. It helps kidneys flush out excess uric acid, lowering the chances of crystal buildup in the joints.
Choose: Water and fruit-infused water
Avoid: Sugary drinks like soda, sweetened teas, energy drinks, and fruit juices high in fructose
Unsweetened drinks, decaffeinated herbal teas, and black coffee (in moderation) can also be good choices.
*Since many herbal teas interfere with medications, ask your healthcare team which teas are safe to drink. People with end-stage kidney disease may also need to limit fluid intake. Ask your healthcare team what healthy hydration looks like for you.
Additional Lifestyle Modifications
Exercise Regularly
Adults should engage in moderate-intensity physical activities for at least 30 minutes most days of the week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This includes activities such as walking briskly or swimming laps, mowing the lawn, dancing, swimming or bicycling on level terrain. Increasing the intensity or the amount of time you are physically active can have even greater health benefits and may be needed to prevent weight gain. Develop an appropriate exercise program that is tailored to your body, lifestyle and needs. Always check with your physician before starting any new or vigorous exercise program.
Maintain a Healthy Body Weight
An obese person is three times more likely to develop gout than someone with a healthier body weight. Avoid crash diets, since fast or extreme weight loss can increase the amount of uric acid in the body. High-protein diets that contain high-purine foods may also be a problem for people with gout.
Stay Hydrated
Many dietitians recommend consuming at least 64 ounces of water daily and more if you are exercising.
Take Vitamins
The risk of gout appears to be lower in men taking daily vitamins.
Specific Diets to Consider
DASH Diet
The DASH diet is short for “Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension.” The focus of this diet is to eat foods that help to lower blood pressure (hypertension). It’s also important to focus on foods rich in magnesium, potassium and calcium.
Mediterranean Diet
The Mediterranean diet is based on the traditional foods that people used to eat in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, including France, Spain, Greece and Italy.
Plant-Based Diet
It’s been said that a plant and grain-based diet is good for overall health, our cardiovascular health, gastrointestinal system and more. This works to help reduce gout flares, too. If you have gout, keep these foods in your diet: low-fat or non-fat dairy products; fresh vegetables and fresh fruit; and nuts and grains.
The Importance of Medical Management
As we know, with many diseases, making modifications to lifestyle and diet is important. However, lifestyle and diet alone are typically not enough once a patient has been diagnosed with gout. Many gout specialists have studied the diet’s effect on uric acid. At best, diet plan for gout patients may beneficially contribute to reducing uric acid levels by 1.0 mg/dL. This reinforces the importance of taking daily medication and not relying on only dietary changes. Each person with gout needs a unique treatment plan including dietary and lifestyle modifications and medication. Gout treatments include drugs to ease inflammation, lower uric acid in the blood, and/or help the kidneys remove excess uric acid. Colchicine (Colcrys) or Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and Glucocorticoid (steroid) pills or shots into the joint can ease pain and swelling of an attack. Gout treatment aims for a uric acid level of 6 mg/dL or lower in the blood to dissolve or prevent crystals. Allopurinol (Zyloprim) and Febuxostat (Uloric) block uric acid production. Probenecid (Benemid) helps the kidneys remove uric acid, and pegloticase (Krystexxa) infusions help break down uric acid.
Monitoring Uric Acid Levels
Know Your Uric Acid Level-and “Go for Six”Knowing your uric acid level is as important as knowing your other healthy benchmark numbers like cholesterol, blood pressure and heart rate. The Gout Education Society recommends people with gout aim for a healthy uric acid level of 6.0 mg/dL or below. Your doctor will determine the level that is right for you. It’s also important to check your uric acid levels every six months to ensure target levels are being met.