Anthony Anderson has revealed that indulging in Louisiana’s rich cuisine came at a price — the actor developed a case of gout in his big toe, a culinary souvenir he definitely didn’t bargain for.
“I was living in New Orleans for a while, shooting a show there,” the actor told Dax Shepard on the April 28 episode of his podcast Armchair Expert. Likely referring to his 2007 crime drama K-Ville, which was set in the Crescent City, Anderson, 54, said, “I was eating nothing but seafood and shellfish.”
“All the purine in the shellfish contributed to my buildup of uric acid and — I’ll never forget — I was in the scene, and I went to kick a door in,” he explained. “And I hit it. And I said, ‘I think I broke my toe.’ ”
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When purines break down, they “form a substance called uric acid,” Verywell Health explains. “High levels of uric acid can cause gout.”
Gout occurs when uric acid crystals build up in a joint, often the big toe, and is more common in people with type 2 diabetes like Anderson.
According to Verywell Health, purine-rich foods — including shellfish like scallops and crab — can increase the risk of repeated gout attacks nearly five-fold.
Anderson told Shepard that although he was in pain, “I finished the scene, then we moved locations. We were filming in a hotel in the middle of the night and I was laying across the bed and they said, ‘Action,’ and I jumped up to run and chase the perp, and I put pressure on my right foot and I collapsed. And I was like, ‘Oh yeah, broke my toe.’ I went to the doctor the next day limping.”
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He explained to the doctor that, ” ‘I kicked the door and I think I broke my toe.’ They’re looking at it like, ‘I don’t think you broke your toe.’ I said, ‘Yeah, no, I think I broke my toe.’ They’re like, ‘You might have the gout.’ I was like, ‘No, ain’t got the gout. ‘ “
The black-ish alum shared he was sent to a doctor who gave him an X-ray to “humor me,” and told him, ” ‘We got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?’ “
“I was like, ‘The good news.’ ‘All right, you didn’t break your toe.’ ‘What’s the bad news?’ ‘You got the gout.’ “
“You motherf—–,” Anderson quipped. “If you look at it, it looks red hot. if you put your hand above it, you can feel the heat coming off of it.”
Gout treatment typically involves anti-inflammatory medications, over-the-counter pain relievers, and dietary adjustments such as avoiding high-purine foods to prevent flare-ups.
