The widely publicised low purine gout diet is based on the purine theory of the cause of gout.

This theory is not the only gout cause theory. The study explained here was designed to discover whether an anti insulin resistance diet would be successful against uric acid levels and gout attacks. Insulin resistance is another cause of gout theory. The diet did have a lot of success.

This is the second article of a series about this diet. Please see Natural Gout Treatment – The Rules Of A Gout Diet That Had A Lot Of Success, for the first article.

This study, based on the Zone diet, did have a positive effect on markers of insulin resistance: triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol) fell. HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol) did not fall. But my purpose in this article is mainly to describe its direct effect on uric acid levels and gout attacks.

After four months on this diet the effects on uric acid levels and gout attacks were quite impressive.

Weight loss and uric acid levels Weight loss over the period was almost 17lbs (7.7kg) i.e. at a rate of about 1lb a week. All but one of the patients lost weight. The median uric acid (UA) fall was 1.7mg/dL.Another very interesting finding was that a more elevated blood uric acid level at the start of the study, meant a large fall of blood uric acid by the end of it. Uric acid levels normalised in 7 of 12 patients who had raised levels of uric acid (UA) before the study.

One participant did not have a raised UA level before the start. It was about 5.9mg/dL. But we already know that gout can occur in people with normal uric acid levels, so this was not unusual.

And gout attacks? Results overall were expressed as a median. Before the study, participants had at least two attacks in the preceding four months. Median monthly attacks before the study were 2.1. After it, attacks fell to 0.6. The fall in the number of gout attacks occurred in all except one patient. The exception participant had shorter and less severe attacks. Eight of the 13 did not have a gout attack during the four month study period, although as mentioned, they had all had at least two in the previous four months and, as noted above, the median was 2.1 a month, or one attack a fortnight, (every two weeks).

AFTER ONE YEAR

About a year later, five of nine patients had no more gout attacks and three had just one attack. So there was a further decrease in attack frequency overall. One patient gained weight after the end of the study. He must have given up on the diet. He suffered three attacks over three months. His blood uric acid levels rose with his weight.

Note especially that the mean uric acid (UA) fall was 1.7mg/dL. In a couple of cases it fell by 2.2 mg/dL and by 2.5mg/dL respectively. Hyperuricemia, (excess uric acid), which may lead to gout, is reckoned to exist if the UA levels exceed 7.2 mg/dL (men), and 6.0 mg/dL (women). The usual UA target in gout treatment is 6.0 mg/dL (somewhat less in women) because at this level the MSU crystals, formed mainly from uric acid may dissolve. (It is the immune system's response to these crystals, which it regards as foreign bodies, which causes the pain and inflammation of gout).

So a fall of 1.7 mg/dL, given these numbers, is quite significant, although you should note that many gout sufferers have UA levels much higher than 7.2 mg/dL, and some gout sufferers do not have excess uric acid.

Were the study patients taking long term medications, such as Allopurinol, for their gout? They were not. They were only taking medications for gout attacks. The study report did not say how much water they drank. Most gout sufferers know that drinking lots of water helps to remove uric acid.

In gout treatment there are always caveats. The study was small. Only 13 male gout sufferers. The study lasted just four months, although there were follow-up results after one year (median).

The researchers noted a connection between weight loss and a fall in uric acid levels in another study and expected the nutrient proportions (40:30:30) contributed to the uric acid fall. They thought that the dietary measures caused the desired improvement in insulin sensitivity.

The results were sufficiently impressive to give hope and encouragement to any gout sufferer who tries this diet as accurately as possible.

The study was conducted in 1999. Unfortunately it has not been followed up by a much larger one designed on the same lines. If conducted, such a study would expand our knowledge of natural gout treatment, perhaps considerably. A natural gout cure is what most gout sufferers want.

The study can be found online if you search "Beneficial effects of weight loss associated with moderate calorie/carbohydrate restriction, and increased proportional intake of protein and unsaturated fat on serum urate and lipoprotein levels in gout: a pilot study." Copy and paste this into a search engine search box and hit enter.

In the study report, uric acid levels were expressed as mmol/l. In this article I have converted these mmol/l numbers to mg/dL, which is a more frequently used measurement.

NB. The contents of this article contain medical information not medical advice. Please always discuss remedies with your doctor or other health care professional before implementing any treatment.