What to know about oatmeal and gout

Gout is a type of arthritis that causes pain and inflammation in the joints. It occurs due to high levels of uric acid, also called urate.

Urate is made when your body breaks down chemicals called purines in food and drinks. Too much urate causes crystals to form around your joints, which leads to gout and its symptoms.

Some foods contain more purines than others. This is why nutrition is an especially important element to consider in treating and preventing gout.

So what about oatmeal and gout? Oatmeal can be part of a balanced diet, though there’s little formal evidence regarding its purine levels.

Foods like organ meats and beer are the most important to avoid if you’re following a diet low in purines. And meat intake overall is generally limited. There’s no guidance that recommends avoiding oatmeal.

While oatmeal might not be the best food for a gout-friendly diet, it certainly isn’t the worst. You can include it in your diet if you can limit your overall purine consumption.

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Oatmeal and gout

Gout occurs due to a buildup of uric acid in your body. Uric acid is a byproduct of the breakdown of purines. Purines and uric acid are found naturally in your body. But around a third of the uric acid in your body comes from purine in your food.

When you have too much uric acid in your body, it’s called hyperuricemia. Over time, hyperuricemia can lead to gout.

The foods highest in purines include meats (especially organ meats), poultry, fish and other seafood, and beer.

So, while it’s important to consider the relationship between oatmeal and gout when making a gout-friendly diet, oatmeal is not on the list of foods highest in purines.

In fact, some research from 2019 includes oatmeal as an example of a low purine diet if it’s made with plant-based, non-soy milk. Dry oats are considered low in purines.

Certain foods, like cherries, are especially recommended for people with gout, as they appear to be effective at lowering uric acid levels. Oatmeal is rarely listed as a particularly helpful food for gout. But since oatmeal is low in purines, there’s no reason why you can’t include it as part of your diet.

Benefits

In addition to being low in purines, oatmeal can have other benefits. For example, it’s high in fiber, which means it promotes a healthy digestive system.

In fact, it contains a specific type of soluble fiber called beta-glucan. According to a 2021 review of research, nutritional studies report that beta-glucan can:

• lower blood glucose (sugar) levels
• reduce the risk of heart disease
• promote weight loss

Weight loss, in particular, may help lower symptoms of gout in people with overweight or obesity. According to a 2021 study, not only is weight loss associated with a reduced risk of gout, but it’s also linked with reduced gout flares.

Risks

High levels of purines in the body lead to a buildup of uric acid, which is called hyperuricemia. Over a sustained period, this can lead to a gout attack or a gout flare-up. This is when the inflammation causes severe pain and the inability to move as usual. 

While oats are considered low in purines, it’s still important to consider your overall purine intake. This helps avoid introducing too many purines for the body to flush out naturally.

This is especially important if you have any risk factors for developing gout, including genetic factors or increased age. This buildup could eventually lead to a gout flare-up, which may need more aggressive treatment.

Other foods to try

Oatmeal is a very common breakfast food. So you might be wondering what other foods you can include in a low purine breakfast, especially if you add fruit to your bowl. Plenty of foods are low in purines, and you can add them as part of a balanced breakfast. These include:

• eggs
• leafy green vegetables
• fruits
• low fat dairy products like yogurt
• nuts
• wheat bread

Foods to avoid

Diet and weight management are considered to be the primary methods for helping prevent gout. Alongside medications, these measures are helpful in preventing flare-ups.

The foods highest in purines include beer, meat, organ meats, poultry, fish, seafood, and certain soy products. It’s also important to avoid sugary beverages. This is because high fructose corn syrup raises uric acid levels and is linked with a higher risk of gout.

Treatments

Gout flare-ups can be very painful and can limit joint mobility and function. As a result, if a gout flare-up occurs, it will most likely require treatment with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). These include ibuprofen (Advil) and naproxen (Aleve).

Another common medication used to treat inflammation in gout is colchicine (Colcrys). A doctor might prescribe colchicine alongside other medications rather than alone.

Low doses of corticosteroids have also been shown to quickly reduce the pain and inflammation of a gout attack. They include prednisone or prednisolone, and doctors may recommend them in tablet form. Other steroid formulations may be injected into the affected joint.

In terms of quickly lowering urate levels in the body, doctors may recommend certain drugs as therapies for hyperuricemia. Examples include allopurinol (Zyloprim) and febuxostat (Uloric), which block an enzyme that helps make uric acid. Another medication, probenecid (Probalan), helps your body get rid of excess urate in the urine.

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Summary

There’s little formal evidence regarding the relationship between oatmeal and gout. But oats contain low purine levels, and oatmeal can contain a medium amount, depending on how it’s prepared. So you can include it as part of a gout-friendly diet.

Oatmeal also has other health benefits, including a high fiber content, so there are many reasons why it may be a good option for you to include.

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