It could be overwhelming to plan and prepare meals for someone suffering from gout. One should remember to make a list of all the foods that can be included and avoided in meals. Keep the list handy while you go shopping. You can also make weekly plans for breakfast, lunch, and dinner even before you go shopping so that you can prepare well in advance. If the symptoms of gout in the patient are severe, his/her mobility can be restricted. Gout patients have to avoid standing for a long time either while cooking or shopping during a flare-up.

Planning a healthy menu for gout can look like an uphill task, but you can start with using the list of foods to eat and avoid, and think of simple meals. For example, sweet potato is a permitted food item for gout patients — so you can make toast, soups, or add it to curry. Make a note of all the recipes that are possible with each ingredient in the list. Now you can focus on preparing breakfast, lunch, and dinner with the foods from the list. Try doing this for one week — and here are some dietary tips for gout patients.

Breakfast
Low purine content cereals are an ideal breakfast option for gout patients. You can combine them with low-fat milk and add low purine fruits. Two servings of whole-grain toast twice a week is also advisable. Check labels and make sure that none of the food contains sugar, fructose, or trans fat. You should limit your fat intake to about 3 tsp a day. Your required intake of fruit can be had during breakfast as whole fruit or juice without added sugar. French toast, bagels are good for breakfast. Just make sure the toast, cereals, and bagels are made with whole grain and whole grain flour rather than refined flour. You can have eggs every day – but remember that boiled eggs are more suited for gout patients rather than fried eggs. Oatmeal twice a week with fruits and berries are recommended for those suffering from gout. Avoid instant brands and opt for those that take some time to cook.

Lunch
An ideal lunch should have lots of low purine vegetables. Dieticians recommend at least three servings of vegetables every day. Steamed or stir-fried vegetables, vegetable sandwiches, or vegetable soups are ideal. Reduce the intake of cauliflower, asparagus to twice a week or less as they contain purine. Steamed or baked low purine fish are ideal for lunch. You can prep them in advance and cook them before lunch. If you have a craving for meat, choose lean meat for about twice a week.

Dinner
Steamed, baked, or boiled vegetables, roasted chicken without skin, flatbreads or steamed whole grain with lentils are all ideal dinner options. Pasta, pizza made with whole grain, and plenty of vegetables are also a great dinner option. You can have lean beef or lean meat once a week if you have not had any other protein during the day. If you are having meat, it can be paired with salad, or you can have fruit after dinner.