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Can an attack be triggered by a couple of slices of pizza and a glass of wine?

Posted , 12 users are following.

paul39293
paul39293

ive been on this diet for a couple of weeks, breakfast a yogurt (low fat/low sugar), lunch and dinner all low fat, low sugar, low(ish) carb, high veg, well balanced meals produced by a nutritionist and calorie controlled. Been workign out and losing weight. Then Friday night I treat myself to a pizza and a glass of red wine and boom - 24 hours later... agony!  Now, before the diet I would be regularly eating all the wrong things in large proportions, so I am wondering why after starting a healthy diet for 2 weeks (and really stiking to it) then having just one day off, does it trigger an attack like this. Am I missreading the situation - was it not triggered by the pizza / wine combo? Was it something else? Or was it the sudden change from uber healthy to super bad that casued it? 

Any thoughts welcome, thanks

0 likes, 27 replies

27 Replies

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  • joey2
    joey2 paul39293

    Posted

    The following is suggested by The Arthrita Foundation. Gout is a form of Arthritis. The goal is to develop a lifelong eating strategy, so focus on following a heart-healthy diet that includes all the food groups, especially vegetables, whole grains, plant proteins such as nuts and legumes and low-fait dairy. Keep refined carbohydrates and processed foods to a minimum.

    Eat More of These Foods

    These foods either lower uric acid levels or are good for the heart:

    • Skim milk

    • Low fat dairy products

    • Whole grain foods

    • Plant oils (olive, canola, sunflower)

    • All vegetables

    • Some fruits (those that are less sweet)

    • Vitamin C supplements (500 to 1,000 milligrams daily)

    • Coffee – if you already drink it

    • Water

    Limit or Avoid These Foods

    These foods are high in purines, or are known to trigger gout attacks:

    • Red meat and organ means (liver, tongue and sweetbreads)

    • Shellfish such as shrimp and lobster

    • Sugary beverages

    • Excessive alcohol (more than one alcoholic drink for women and two for men within 24 hours)

    Talk to Your Doctor About These Foods

    Some foods associated with high uric acid levels are heart healthy. Your doctor can help you decide if they’re right for you.

    • Moderate alcohol (one drink daily for women and two for men)

    • Seafood (oily types such as salmon and mackerel)

    • Fruits

    • paul39293
      paul39293 joey2

      Posted

      Thanks Joey, useful stuff - I like the bit that says I am actually allowed to drink something!
  • W-H
    W-H paul39293

    Posted

    Are you on Allopurinol? If you are not then sure what you ate can trigger....your uric acid levels crystal build up might be near tiping point and the extra bad stuff could have just sets it all off.

    Diet alone will not solve your Gout, irrespective of what you read online. Actually nothing will solve it but Allopurinol will keep it fully under control ie. NO ATTACKS after the levels have been stabilized.

    • paul39293
      paul39293 W-H

      Posted

      At the time I was not on Allopurinol, this was my first episode. Since then I have started taking 300mg daily and am monitoring my UA levels. I atarted at 7.2 and am now down to 4.5. I am also eating healthily, not drinking at all and avoiding high purine foods. Drinking 2-3L of water a day. The pain in my toe has subsided but is still there. I have managed to reduce my painkillers to 1 50mg diclofenac a day and this combination is allowing comfort and mobility. I am surprised at how long it is taking to clear completely, but there are definite signs of improvement. I'd be interested in knowing from others:

      1. How long an attack can take to clear for you

      2. What your UA levals are

      3. How much Allopurinol you take

      4. if you have been able to reduce Allopurinol after a while

      Cheers guys (or not as the case may be!)

       

    • Atilaeluno
      Atilaeluno W-H

      Posted

      2goutbuster, I do not agree with you.

      My fist attack was when I was 22. Now I'm 40 and still I get attacks. However, four years ago I had an attack and I changed my diet completely. It took me over two months to get back on track. I lost 20 pounds and I did not take any medicine. The pain was horrible but after the third day thngs start changing. I eased the pain with ice and helped me. After I could do some exercise, I went back to play soccer. I'd never felt so good. No headaches, no pain in my feet, better performance, etc. before that attack, after playing soccer, I was in bad shape. I had to take pills for the pain in my feet and for my headache. The diet really worked and I did not had an attack for three years. Unfortunately, I started eating without a balance until the kineys could not eliminate the UA. Now at this moment, I have gout and started my diet and I'm much better now. For me the diet works pretty good.

      Thanks!

  • Please_Cancel
    Please_Cancel paul39293

    Posted

    I am living proof that gout can be controlled by diet.

    3 times I asked my doctor if it were possible and 3 times he said NO!

    I consider myself fortunate that I had a bad reaction to Allopurinal and was forced to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

    Get to know your body. I have become a bit of a food hypochondriac and analyse every twinge every bodily difference but I don't deny myself anything and don't particularly eat well. I have cut out liver pate and prawns, eat less mushrooms, soup and gravy and reduced my alcohol intake. I try to eat cherries, barley grass powder and celery all of which are supposedly helpful. Stay off the tablets if you can!

    • paul39293
      paul39293 Please_Cancel

      Posted

      So far, with very strict dieting I have not been able to reduce UA levels below 7 - I am monitoring every 2 days. The only thing that has worked so far is Allopurionol. I am sure everyone is different, but I hope to get to a point where I can get this under control with meds and then keep it that way with sensible diet.
    • W-H
      W-H Please_Cancel

      Posted

      Cold hard blood uric acid levels numbers or it is just a snap shot of your life ie. Gout not raising it's ugly head temporarily while doing internal damage silently.

      With very strict diet you might reduce blood uric acid level by 1mg/dl if you are very lucky. So a borderline case might benefit but most won't. I mean everyone should eat good diet irrespective of gout so yes good diet is definitely better than bad diet.

      My mantra-> Excellent diet + Allopurinol + exercise = Best chance you can give yourself for a long healthy Gout attack free life.

       

  • james86315
    james86315 paul39293

    Posted

    Hi,

    after my previous post, where I overindulged in Red French wine. It has taken a very long time to get back to normal.

    I live on a very restricted diet, chicken, fish, veggie meals, very little alcohol, I have a Benechek blood testing machine from Amazon.

    My readings bounce up and down between slightly high to just about normal, I find it difficult to drink several litres of water every day, I have tried Cherry Juice every day for six months it made no difference.

    In consultation with my doctor, I dropped my level of Allopurinol to 200 per day.

    After going to France it's back to 300 per day, this seems to be the only effective remedy for me.

    But everybody is different, one of my relatives has suffered from it for over 50 years. He drinks beer when he wishes, he eats what he likes but seldom gets an attack.

    Best of luck  

    • W-H
      W-H james86315

      Posted

      Stop playing with Allop levels. Don't go below 300mg and stay at it so your body with help of Allop can get rid of old uric acid etc build up. You can go up to 600-900mg per day to get a grip on your numbers. In th ebegining I was taking 400mg and now have stabilized at daily 300mg.

      Any animal source protein is bad for you. Vegetarian source of protein much much better with regards to general health and specifically Gout. I personally don't take any dairy or any non veg stuff. I drink wine regularly ie. 2 glass every few days with dinner. No attack in last 5 years and blood uric acid level under 5mg/dl.

      Even got heart fully checked up....A OK :-)

      How long have you been taking Allop?

      Beer or hard drinks I don't touch as they are like poison for Gout :-)

  • Atilaeluno
    Atilaeluno paul39293

    Posted

    Hi Paul,

    I can tell you that diet can help you without pills. I have gout since my early 20s. I can tell you that diet can help you tremendously with this horrendous disease. Get a test for the foods you are allergic to. It would help you understand better how your body reacts with certain kind of foods. If you can eat papaya. Sometimes it's not easy to get, but if you can get it, eat lots of it. It has worked very good for me. You can read on Internet about this fruit. Papaya at this moment is my breakfast and my dinner. I have to follow this diet for three months. I did it 4 years ago and I did not have an attack for three years. Try to stay away form sugar, bread and preservatives. Also, if you can, try to stay away from pills. In the long run, it would affect your kidneys and liver. Besides that, pills get your body acid. The idea is to have your body alkaline.

    I have never tried allopurinol before. What happens when you stop this medication?

    Good luck and keep up with your diet!!

  • 21Dewsbury
    21Dewsbury paul39293

    Posted

    Okay , in summary,

    1. See a specialist (not your GP).

    2. Take Allopurinol ... it may take over a year to be effective... keep taking it.

    3. The diet/lifestyle choices are a minor factor and a distraction.

    4. There are probably lots (and lots) of gout sufferers who do not search the internet for solutions. This is because they take Alloprinol.

    The above is based on my gout experience and more importantly a specialist in gout management.  in summary - take allopurinol

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