No Doubt On Gout For Apathetic Atkins Dieter
I really enjoy coming across new blogs, especially when the topic is about livin' la vida low-carb.
So I was pleased when I found The T.A.B.A.C.C.O. blog, which stands for the Truth About Business And Congressional Crimes Organization. The anonymous blogger had a blog post last Saturday about how the Atkins diet only provided a minimal amount of weight loss for him while allegedly causing him to develop gout.
Claiming he was "taken in" by the low-carb lifestyle, the blogger writes he was "dead wrong" about the Atkins diet because it supposedly was the reason why he got gout.
In doing some research on how gout comes about, here's what I found according to the Wellington Regional Rheumatology Unit, Hutt Hospital, Lower Hutt, New Zealand:
1. Consuming foods with purines that produce high levels of uric acid.
2. Being overweight or obese.
3. Drinking too many alcoholic beverages.
4. Taking certain high blood pressure medications.
5. Having kidney disease.
Only one of those five ways of getting gout has anything to do with livin' la vida low-carb. While not everyone who eats red meat, which are higher in purines than other foods, develops gout, it certainly should be one of the issues to be looked at for treating the pain. However, it is no more of a factor than obesity, drinking, prescription drugs for blood pressure, and kidney disease are. Don't automatically assume that it is your low-carb diet behind your gout if you get it.
The blogger goes on to discuss how he's been going up and down in his weight for the past quarter century since high school because of his "on again, off again" low-carb lifestyle. He was even doing it all wrong (just like this person I previously blogged about) when he first started because he was drinking a quart of sugary grapefruit juice every single day and wasn't dropping a pound. When he corrected this error, the weight "virtually melted off overnight."
Up and down, up and down he went as he would constantly quit his low-carb program after losing the weight he needed. Why do this to yourself?
Anyway, the blogger began anew in July 2002 and committed himself to keeping up with his carb intake this time around as well as his fiber, sodium and cholesterol. He allowed himself to go "carb-crazy" by eating up to 90g of carbohydrates on some days and would quickly cut back to 20-25g to get back in line.
"I was dogged, persistent and conscientious," he boasted.
But for some reason he noticed his weight started "spiraling upwards" in November 2004. What happened to his commitment to this lifestyle change? How did he start gaining weight if he was dedicated as he claims? This always gets me when people say their low-carb lifestyle failed them. It won't fail you if you won't fail it!
In March 2005, he lamented that he had only lost 17.5 pounds after being on the Atkins diet for a little more than 2 1/2 years and that the protein he consumed was the culprit in his developing gout.
To rebel against the pain he was feeling from the gout, he switched from livin' la vida low-carb to livin' la vida "eat anything."
"I have eaten a few 40-ounce cans of yams in one day with butter, 1-cup of brown sugar, and a whole bag of marshmallows – the ones I couldn’t fit into the casserole dish, I ate as is," he wrote. "I have eaten pasta, fruit everyday including bananas, strawberries, grapes, blueberries, peaches and plums. I eat humongous cans of Bush’s Baked Beans. I eat waffles, homemade ice cream, lemon curd meringue pie (which will appear in a future blog article), and when I buy sandwiches at Checkers and McDonalds, I don’t throw the bun away – I eat it."
Is he bragging about it? Yeah, a little because he claims he was able to lose 19 pounds by eating all these high-carb foods. How? He cut back on his portions. That will undoubtedly help you lose weight, but I wonder how hungry this guy gets. And with his history of weight fluctuation, how long is he going to be able to control his weight by eating anything? Something tells me he's gonna eat if he gets hungry. Then he'll be back on that rollercoaster all over again. This man needs a way of eating that will create stability for his weight while not making his gout any worse.
Did eating low-carb/high-protein cause his gout? The answer to that question is uncertain, but I do not believe that should discourage others from trying this great way of eating for themselves. I've been livin' la vida low-carb for almost two years and have not developed gout. Is this something a lot of people have had to deal with? If it is, I sure haven't heard about any other cases. Feel free to share your comments about whether you, a friend, or family member who has been on a low-carb plan has had to deal with gout. What was done to help correct the problem? We await your feedback.
So I was pleased when I found The T.A.B.A.C.C.O. blog, which stands for the Truth About Business And Congressional Crimes Organization. The anonymous blogger had a blog post last Saturday about how the Atkins diet only provided a minimal amount of weight loss for him while allegedly causing him to develop gout.
Claiming he was "taken in" by the low-carb lifestyle, the blogger writes he was "dead wrong" about the Atkins diet because it supposedly was the reason why he got gout.
In doing some research on how gout comes about, here's what I found according to the Wellington Regional Rheumatology Unit, Hutt Hospital, Lower Hutt, New Zealand:
1. Consuming foods with purines that produce high levels of uric acid.
2. Being overweight or obese.
3. Drinking too many alcoholic beverages.
4. Taking certain high blood pressure medications.
5. Having kidney disease.
Only one of those five ways of getting gout has anything to do with livin' la vida low-carb. While not everyone who eats red meat, which are higher in purines than other foods, develops gout, it certainly should be one of the issues to be looked at for treating the pain. However, it is no more of a factor than obesity, drinking, prescription drugs for blood pressure, and kidney disease are. Don't automatically assume that it is your low-carb diet behind your gout if you get it.
The blogger goes on to discuss how he's been going up and down in his weight for the past quarter century since high school because of his "on again, off again" low-carb lifestyle. He was even doing it all wrong (just like this person I previously blogged about) when he first started because he was drinking a quart of sugary grapefruit juice every single day and wasn't dropping a pound. When he corrected this error, the weight "virtually melted off overnight."
Up and down, up and down he went as he would constantly quit his low-carb program after losing the weight he needed. Why do this to yourself?
Anyway, the blogger began anew in July 2002 and committed himself to keeping up with his carb intake this time around as well as his fiber, sodium and cholesterol. He allowed himself to go "carb-crazy" by eating up to 90g of carbohydrates on some days and would quickly cut back to 20-25g to get back in line.
"I was dogged, persistent and conscientious," he boasted.
But for some reason he noticed his weight started "spiraling upwards" in November 2004. What happened to his commitment to this lifestyle change? How did he start gaining weight if he was dedicated as he claims? This always gets me when people say their low-carb lifestyle failed them. It won't fail you if you won't fail it!
In March 2005, he lamented that he had only lost 17.5 pounds after being on the Atkins diet for a little more than 2 1/2 years and that the protein he consumed was the culprit in his developing gout.
To rebel against the pain he was feeling from the gout, he switched from livin' la vida low-carb to livin' la vida "eat anything."
"I have eaten a few 40-ounce cans of yams in one day with butter, 1-cup of brown sugar, and a whole bag of marshmallows – the ones I couldn’t fit into the casserole dish, I ate as is," he wrote. "I have eaten pasta, fruit everyday including bananas, strawberries, grapes, blueberries, peaches and plums. I eat humongous cans of Bush’s Baked Beans. I eat waffles, homemade ice cream, lemon curd meringue pie (which will appear in a future blog article), and when I buy sandwiches at Checkers and McDonalds, I don’t throw the bun away – I eat it."
Is he bragging about it? Yeah, a little because he claims he was able to lose 19 pounds by eating all these high-carb foods. How? He cut back on his portions. That will undoubtedly help you lose weight, but I wonder how hungry this guy gets. And with his history of weight fluctuation, how long is he going to be able to control his weight by eating anything? Something tells me he's gonna eat if he gets hungry. Then he'll be back on that rollercoaster all over again. This man needs a way of eating that will create stability for his weight while not making his gout any worse.
Did eating low-carb/high-protein cause his gout? The answer to that question is uncertain, but I do not believe that should discourage others from trying this great way of eating for themselves. I've been livin' la vida low-carb for almost two years and have not developed gout. Is this something a lot of people have had to deal with? If it is, I sure haven't heard about any other cases. Feel free to share your comments about whether you, a friend, or family member who has been on a low-carb plan has had to deal with gout. What was done to help correct the problem? We await your feedback.
posted by Jimmy Moore at
10/02/2005 12:08:00 PM
2 Comments:
Jimmy,
I want to let you and your readers know that I have suffered from Gout for close to fifteen years and once I learned to control it, I've had no attacks despite being on a LC plan for much of the last six years.
You and your readers probably know me best because of Health-Hack.com, but I also run a site on Gout, The Cause of Gout Symptoms. On that site, I explain that gout is caused simply by your body either creating too much uric acid, or not excreting it efficiently enough. The main thing L-C Gout sufferers need to bear in mind is that since Livin' La Vida Low-Carb can have a diuretic effect, you need to drink LOTS of fluids. I mean, on L-C you need to do that anyway, but with Gout, it becomes extra-special important (and even moreso again if you are in Beneficial Dietary Ketosis).
Oh yeah, and take your meds (or tart cherry juice, or whatever you use to manage your Gout).
And thanks, Jimmy- you gave me a great idea for my next post!
Kevin "Mister Tut" Kennedy-Spaien
Marvelous review of my Post except for: Is he bragging about it? Yeah, a little because he claims he was able to lose 19 pounds by eating all these high-carb foods. How? He cut back on his portions. That will undoubtedly help you lose weight, but I wonder how hungry this guy gets." - Wrong! I ate everything in sight with no regard for anything except intake; and still I lost those 19 pounds. No, I cannot explain it, but it did not last!
Great Post you did, but I must clear up this one misconception.
PS I keep a database of everything I eat or drink. I didn't go off the wagon slightly when I originally gained weight. I ate the same way but the pounds just started coming back. In January, 2009, I weighed 263lbs @5-7". That's when I cut my portions. Now at 245 with 200-300 carbs per diem.
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