[LeCow]

Gout cannot be caused by your diet.

You can temporarily increase your uric acid levels by eating purine rich food/drink beer etc. But if your body is excreting it, as it should be - the levels won't remain high enough to build up crystals.

It takes years of persistent high levels, it's always caused by your body. But you can reduce attacks by changing diet, loosing weight or taking medication.

If your body was functioning properly it wouldn't matter how terrible your diet was.

[darkerside]

Bad analogy, but you can run your car without an oil change for a damn long time. The eventual breakdown isn't just an innate action taken by your car.