Gout is a painful form of arthritis caused by having high levels of uric acid in your body. Your doctor may recommend medication to alleviate your condition. Other strategies include consuming a low-purine diet, because purines make up 15 percent of the uric acid that is found in your body, and increasing your fluid intake. Grapefruit interacts with some medications and may worsen some complications of gout. If you have gout, consult your doctor before consuming grapefruit.
Gout Medicine Interaction
If you take medication to manage your gout symptoms, talk to your doctor before consuming grapefruit because it interacts with some gout medicines. For example, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration advises you to avoid grapefruit juice or grapefruit when taking colchicines. Grapefruit interferes with enzymes in your body that metabolize, or break down, some medications in your digestive system. That means more of the medicine stays in your body, which increases its potency to potentially dangerous levels. Eating grapefruit while taking colchicines can lead to muscle damage, nerve damage, organ failure and problems forming blood cells. Taking your medication and grapefruit at different times of the day does not stop the interaction.
Steroid Interaction
Your doctor may also prescribe corticosteroids, which are injected into inflamed joints. Grapefruit can cause raised blood levels of some steroid medications, notes Drugs.com. Ask your doctor whether it's safe to consume grapefruit products if you are managing symptoms with corticosteroids.
Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are a complication of gout, and one strategy for preventing stones is increasing your fluid intake. Another is consuming citrus juices like orange and lemon. However, consuming grapefruit juice may not be beneficial because it possibly raises your risk for forming kidney stones, according to the editors of "Minimally Invasive Urologic Surgery." There is conflicting scientific evidence regarding this effect, however, according to a 2003 study published in the "British Journal of Nutrition."
Low-Purine Diet
If you are following a low-purine diet and do not take medication to manage your gout, grapefruit will not thwart this effort. All fruits and fruit juices are moderately low in purines, notes the website Nephrology Physicians. High-purine foods to avoid include yeast, gravies, organ meats, fish such as herring and mackerel, lentils, soybeans and poppy seeds
References
- PubMed Health; Gout; June 2009
- FDA.gov; Information for Healthcare Professionals: New Safety Information for Colchicine (Marketed as Colcrys); July 2009
- MayoClinic.com; Grapefruit Juice: Beware of Dangerous Medication Interactions; Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.; November 2010
- Drugs.com: Probenecid and Colchicine (Colchicine/Probenecid) Alcohol and Food Interactions
- "British Journal of Nutrition"; Influence of Grapefruit-, Orange- and Apple-Juice Consumption on Urinary Variables and Risk of Crystallization; Ruth Hoenow, et al.; 2003
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center: Low-Purine Diet
