If you’ve ever suffered from gout, you know it’s an incredibly painful condition. When a friend or family member is has it, there's no question they are suffering. Conventional shoes can make the pain worse, so you may wonder, what are the best shoes for gout?

Causes of Gout

While many factors contribute to gout, the immediate cause is a high concentration of uric acid in the blood. That leads to a buildup of urate crystals accumulating in your joints. These crystals cause the inflammation and swelling that lead to intense pain, often in the toes, feet, ankles, knees and/or hands.

According to the Mayo Clinic, your body produces uric acid when it breaks down purines. Purines are found naturally in our bodies and are present in higher concentrations in certain foods and drinks—primarily meats, seafood and beer. In a normal situation, uric acid dissolves in our blood and passes through our kidneys without incident. But during a gout attack, there’s an excess build-up of the acid and the nasty symptoms hit. It may be because of an increased intake of purines or poor kidney function.

Finding Gout Relief

The symptoms of a gout attack often come on suddenly and intensely. Sometimes sufferers wake up in the middle of the night. And while the initial intense pain may subside for hours at a time, you will likely still be suffering from discomfort, swollen joints, and decreased mobility until the attack subsides. If you think you’re experiencing a gout attack, professionals recommend seeing your doctor. This is not a condition that should go untreated.

In consultation with your doctor, you may find relief through medication, dietary changes, and staying well-hydrated. You can also take certain steps at home to decrease the discomfort during a flare-up. If the attack is affecting your toes or feet, selecting the right shoes for gout can reduce agitation.

What are the right kinds of shoes for gout?

During a gout attack, any pressure on swollen joints increases pain. Tight-fitting socks and shoes are a no-go. To relieve pain, keep affected feet bare when possible. When you can't go barefoot, wear spacious shoes. Give your toes and feet plenty of room so your shoes don't pinch or cramp. As your feet are more swollen than normal, opt for a wide, soft, roomy shoe for the most comfortable feel.

The big toe joint is the most commonly affected joint when it comes to gout, so avoid any shoes with a pointy toe box. Many conventional shoes put pressure on your big-toe joint, forces your big toe inward towards your other toes.

While some people recommend wearing cushioned and inflexible shoes for gout, there is some controversy over this advice. Those in the pro-cushion camp say that flexible or minimal shoes might cause you to put more pressure on your big-toe joint. Dr. Campitelli, a podiatrist based in Ohio, says his experience has given him a different perspective. He says heavily cushioned shoes cause us to strike with our heels and push off with our toes, and this actually stresses the big-toe joint.

On the other hand, wearing minimal shoes causes us to strike mid-foot and take shorter strides when we move. This means we actually push off more with our leg muscles and rely less on pushing off with our big toes. That puts less overall pressure on our big-toe joints.

Best Sandals for Gout

A customer recently ordered a pair of our Solstice sandals in wide width because she was experiencing a gout flare-up. She needed better footwear to help ease her pain. She reported back to us, “you have made me a truly fantastic pair of shoes! They fit beautifully and I can wear them today in the middle of a gout flare—yea!” She also said the shoes were lightweight and comfortable on her feet.

Our Camino leather barefoot sandals are another good wide toe box sandal for gout because they have a suede footbed over comfortable Poron® foam. Once you properly position the back strap, it does the work of holding the sandal on your foot.

Best Shoes for Gout

Another Softstar devotee (and, full disclosure, husband of the owner), also suffers from occasional gout attacks. He says that when a flare-up hits someone, they end up walking very tenderly. "Over-striking” or pushing off the toe is painful and sufferers try to avoid it. He says it’s best to have a roomy, soft shoe that does not exert much force on the toe joint.

The last time he had a gout flare-up, he wore his Softstar Rogues. He remarked that he still limped around, but the Rogues were the best shoe to stay as comfortable as possible.

For the ultimate toe freedom, we recommend our Primal line of wide toe box shoes. Our Primal sole shape has one of the widest toe boxes on the market (if not the widest). Primal Sawyers are wide toe box casual shoes. They are one of the best shoes for gout because they are exceptionally lightweight and super soft.

In Conclusion

We designed all of our shoes here at Softstar with a barefoot feel in mind. The shape of our shoes gives your toes plenty of room and won’t unnaturally scrunch up your feet. They are flexible, soft and lightweight.

For gout relief, some health practitioners may recommend that you wear a pair of roomy barefoot shoes to remove pressure. If you can, rest up and stay off your feet as much as possible during your bout with gout. We wish you a smooth road back to pain-free feet!

Please note: while we are shoemakers who are passionate about foot health, we are not doctors and cannot prescribe medical advice. Consult your health care practitioner if you think you’re suffering from gout.