Does Fat Affect Gout?
In this post we will learn about how fat relates to gout. Fat is important to our health because it supports many of the body’s functions. Fat provides energy and is a carrier of essential nutrients such as vitamins A, D, E, K, and carotenoids.
Problem with fat is it’s high in calories and more calories equals to more weight which is linked to poor health. We all eat fat every day, our bodies need it but the question is how much fat do we really need?
The confusion with fat is that there are two kinds. Harmful fats and healthy fats consisting of saturated, unsaturated, trans fat and polyunsaturated fat. Did you know that your body also makes its’ own fat when you eat excess calories?
The harmful fat consists of saturated and trans fat. Saturated fat comes mostly from animal sources of food like red meat, chicken, seafood and dairy products like cheese and butter. Saturated fat increases total cholesterol and LDL which can lead to heart disease down the road, even type 2 diabetes! Animal or vegetable, saturated fat carries the same risk.
Trans fat is made from food processing method where they partially hydrogenate which makes the food solid at room temperature like vegetable shortening and are found in many processed foods and fried foods.
When shopping at your grocery store and you see the words hydrogenated, partially hydrogenated, or shortening, it contains trans fat; you’re better off leaving it on the shelf. Trans fat will increase cholesterol and LDL the fastest and lower HDL the good cholesterol.
What Fats Are Healthy?
The healthier fats are mostly unsaturated. Polyunsaturated fat is mostly found in nuts, seeds, fatty fish like salmon which is very good for us since it provides omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids which helps lower total cholesterol. Since our bodies don’t make them we have to get them from food.
Monounsaturated fats help raise HDL which is good cholesterol and can be found in avocados, nuts, seeds and olive oil. Olive oil should be the only oil used in all your cooking. I recommend in my ebook to avoid all vegetable oils and other oils like sunflower, canola etc.. since these are very harmful to our health.
In the world of good fats, you want to be eating mostly omega-3s which help fight inflammation, lower cholesterol and control blood clotting. So eating fresh fish like salmon, trout, flaxseed, walnuts and soy are excellent sources. The key in a gout diet is to eat 10% of your daily calories as fat, so about 200 calories a day.
Fat in a Gout Diet
The way fat affects gout is by adding more pounds causes to raise your uric acid levels and increases the risk of getting a gout attack. Put simply, the more you weigh the less efficient your body is at removing excess uric acid in the blood.
Dr. Hyon Choi who is a leading gout researcher at the Gout and Crystal Arthropathy Center at Harvard Medical School in Boston states, “There’s a very tight association between excess weight and the risk of developing gout and gout flares. It’s a dose-response relationship, meaning the more you weigh, the higher your risk, and the more likely you are to have recurrent attacks. Insulin resistance, a state in which insulin levels remain abnormally high because the body has reduced sensitivity to the hormone, is likely the major player in the increased risk of gout linked to body fat. Higher levels of insulin circulating throughout the body inhibit uric acid elimination by the kidneys.”
There is also something to be said about belly fat and the risk of gout. Research has found that gout and visceral fat, the fat that builds up inside the abdomen is linked to insulin resistance, potential development of type 2 diabetes as well as gout. Do you have a big belly?
A 2015 study published in Arthritis Research & Therapy found that people who were not overweight as measured by the BMI index but had high levels of visceral fat (belly fat) were at a higher risk to develop gout compared their flat belly counterparts (47.4% versus 27.3%). Furthermore, they were also more at risk of suffering from metabolic syndrome (31.7% versus 13.2%).
So how much fat should you eat every day? In a gout diet you should eat no more than 10% of your calories as fat. So in a typical and average diet of 2000 calories, 200 should be fat, so about 22 grams of fat can be eaten daily, if you wish to count your calories and fat intake.
10 replies to "Gout and Fat"
Can you get gout pain in other joints? I have not been diagnosed but I suffer from joint pain triggered by certain foods.
Lately I have gone on a all raw food diet of fruits and veggies. No meat. Only eggs and salmon. And my pain is through the roof! I am looking lots of weight which is a bonus. I sure would like to know how to stop this pain. Cleaning up my diet was to slow down the aging process, now I’m about crippled. Help!
Hi Elisabeth!
I can’t help you much, best to visit a rheumatologist and see what exactly you have, they will need to do some blood tests to really determine. Drink lots of water and stick to a non-protein meaning no meat or fish diet for now. Eat only fresh vegetables, legumes, 100% whole grain breads, pastas and rices. Avoid any fruit for now. Drink only water, herbal teas and coffee.
A discovery that I made is that while soybean oil does not affect uric acid levels, it is very high in polyunsaturated fats. I have found that soybean oil increases inflammation when I eat it in larger amounts (salad dressings). To avoid a strong inflammatory response, it is probably be best to get most of your fats in the form of monounsaturated fats (olive oil) and saturated fats (dairy). Nuts in moderation are okay as long as you do not overdo it. And also take a teaspoon of highly refined cod liver oil once a day for the Omega-3 fatty acids (I use Carlson’s brands). I have stopped using store-bought salad dressings and now use olive oil, apple cider vineagar, and a dash of salt and pepper as my salad dressing with a sprinkling of cheese on top for taste.
Also, make sure that saturated fat intake is in moderation. Try to get most of your fat intake in the form of monounsaturated fats.
First off, your website was recommended to me by my doctor and by a friend of my moms.
Just wants to say that I deal with T2 diabetes now and have been for 3 years.
4 years ago, I weighed 475. That is when I started to change my life as far as food and exercise goes. A year later and down to 400, I suffered a mild heart attack. I continued to improve my diet, eating more of the Mediterranean diet.
I went on the low carb high fat diet for 6 months, but did not lose any weight, or I lost very little, I dropped weight by only 10 lbs. I went back to Mediterranean diet and started to lose weight again.
This year Jan 1, my weight was 345. I am still on the Mediterranean diet, but focus on foods mainly from Jerusalem area and Africa, mainly moraccan. Beef and pork are out of my diet. Chicken and seafood is limited to 10 oz a week. Mainly I eat vegetables and fruit.
4 weeks ago I had a very painful gout attack which took over my entire right foot. And I know why I got it – dehydration due to drinking hot herbal tea. So now I drink 90-100 oz cold water a day, excluding the lemon water i drink before breakfast. I walk every day, a minimum of 8000 steps and a max of 12,000 steps with the help of a Fitbit and support of friends. I have 2 meals and 1 snack every day. I take a tart cherry extract every day and also take cell salts my sister got me.
And the good news on all this – if you can call some news good, is: no cholesterol meds needed due to diet and lifestyle change. And because I do so well with my blood sugar, I save $$ there too because I only need 2 a1c checks a year!
But for someone to say – weightloss is easy for men, especially for diabetics! They are wrong. Weightloss is hard, even if you follow your menu and exercise plans to the T!
So far this year, I have widdles my weight down to 327. It was at 324 last Thursday until Saturday, but that was because of a stomach bug!
But I am determined. My weight range set by my doctor is 212-225, so I set my goal at 217.5.
If you want, you can follow my progress on my blog at:
Thanks again for the info on your site. I am hoping that with that info and with the changes I made, my gout will stay in remission.
Hi Dirk!
Yes I will checkout your blog and good luck with all the dietary and lifestyle changes in your life. It is difficult for sure but you must stay focused and disciplined. That is the key!
HI Spiro!,
I HAVE BEEN BUYING YOUR SUPPLEMENT FROM AMAZON since it first came out and take it twice a day with tart cherry juice and apple cider vinegar.
I recently had a big flare up in my right foot so took the pred prescribed for me to lower the inflammation. It is working. I am a whole food vegan, eating about 85% raw food and have been doing that for over ten years. I do not drink.
This time the PA I saw at the local hospital clinic (I live in a rural area) suggested I start a low dose of allopurinol when the flare up goes away. I am almost 73, female. My uric acid levels are a little over 7 every time I am tested.
What is your opinion of the home testing kits for uric acid and
is there one you recommend?
Faith
I never tried any home testing kits to measure uric acid but I do know that they aren’t that accurate a lot of the times. Better to do more frequent blood tests if you can.
I think I am with the right doctor. I am afraid that I may have gout attacking me some day. My uric acid level is 575 or 9. I have been drinking at least 3/4 liters of water. I gave completely stopped eating meat. I eat eggs, and fish of some kinds.
My question is, how close I am towards the gout attack? Am I on the right track of improving? I have been reading gout disease prevention and treatment and I think I am following well.
Thanks so much again.
Hi Philip!
Very hard to tell since I don’t know enough about your health. You’re on the right track diet-wise but who knows how much it will help you since everybody is different. Best to work with your doctor together and monitoring your uric acid levels by doing frequent blood tests.