reborn wrote:
I should have clarified a bit more I suppose. I know I can eat beans in moderation but I don't know if it will be enough etc.
It doesn't take many beans to get enough lysine; and not only beans have lysine in them, they just have more of it (you are getting small amounts from other things too, so it adds up and if you just add a few beans it can push it over into the green).
Watermelon is also a source of lysine: If you eat half of one (not something I recommend).
Can you give me an example of your diet now? Such as types and amounts of foods you're eating currently.
reborn wrote:
Also I should point out since going vegetarian my diet is ~ 60% raw and 40% cooked vegeterian food.
Why so much raw? Raw food is harder to digest and absorb nutrients from. At least steaming is usually a good idea for veggies.
reborn wrote:
I generally am not much of a lover of sweet things outside of chocolate and fruit.
Fruit is high in fructose. I'm not sure how strong the connection there is to gout from fruit rather than fructose sweetened drinks, but personally I would avoid too much of it to start, and then slowly introduce a more moderate amount of fruit later on after everything is under control.
The only benefit you're likely getting from fruit in terms of the gout is the large amount of water that comes with it. I would just drink more water to replace any fruit reduction.
Although you may want to make any changes slowly just in case a quick change triggers an attack.
reborn wrote:
I can't go around eating bananas 24/7.
Right, I recommend eating zero bananas a day. If you're going to eat fruit, smaller berries (strawberries, blueberries, and definitely blackberries) are the best choice since they have actual health value (bananas are the junk food of the fruit world). Berries are loaded with phytonutrients and antioxidants which bananas are very poor in. And blackberries are actually so low in sugar that they have a significant amount of protein in them per calorie.
In terms of nutrition, though, I would still limit fruit to a couple handfuls a day, and try to choose more whole grains, beans, and vegetables.
With fruit, aside from blackberries, too many of the calories come from sugar, and I would be worried about the fructose both in terms of gout, and them not providing enough fat or protein. Essential fatty acids are essential (as in the name), and without them we get sick, so it's important to have a good fat source, like nuts and seeds, or a moderate amount of canola oil, to provide that.
Without knowing more about your diet now, I would suggest slowly replacing the fruit you are eating with beans, and monitoring your gout pain (keep a food diary, and record any pain), to see if it's getting better or worse.
If it starts getting worse, then cut back on the beans a little.
Once you reach 1.5 cups of beans a day (about 300 grams), that should be plenty, and you can stop increasing it if you want.
Even 1 cup, or 1/2 cup may be enough, but that depends on what else you're eating.
reborn wrote:I am really almost determined to go Vegan, but I need to plan this out properly in a fashion that also won't trigger gout attacks.
I certainly understand. Cronometer is a great tool to help do that:
https://cronometer.com/
But I'd say make any changes in protein slowly, and keep a food diary. It's OK to not eat enough lysine for a week or so, as long as you adjust to a stable and complete diet after that.
And of course, make sure to supplement on B-12 for sure (1,000 mcg tablet twice a week), and vitamin D if you don't get a lot of sunlight.
You could also supplement on DHA and EPA from algae; this may help with inflammation.
reborn wrote:At the moment due to the sudden sharp weight loss I've experienced due to going Vegeterian and 60% raw food my uric acid is going up and down like crazy. My doctor claims its only normal as the fat that gets dissolved there are purines that raise the uric acid. I haven't really researched the subject, but I've heard from family friends of ours that have gout that they had similar experiences.
That makes sense. Weight loss is good (if you were overweight), but you may want to slow your weight loss by increasing your calories a bit.
If you're having trouble eating enough calories to slow it down, then add in some extra canola oil (low acid rapeseed oil), and you should be able to slow your weight loss.
The slower it goes, the less likely you'll have a gout attack.