Once you initiated allopurinol you do not stop. Taking it on and off can trigger gout and worsen and prolong the existing attack. The urine ph goes up after the meals and dips in between. The normal range is 4.6~8.0. In my experience, the baking soda in water I took before going to bed is the most effective dose. The second is the one I take after I got up. About 86% of people who responded to my survey said baking soda is useful, very useful or extremely useful. The rest of 14% said not useful or not useful at all. Hope it will be useful to you too. By the way, did you start allopurinol after the attack has completely subsided? Did you start allopurinol with colchicine or an nsaid to prevent attacks? If you did not, allopurinol may keep the attack alive. A paragraph in http://www.Icuredmygout.Org reads:

4.8 allopurinol is a very potent gout trigger. Allopurinol can reduce the blood uric acid level by about 2.5~3.5 mg/dl (normal 4.5~7.0 mg/dl) in weeks after it is initiated. This causes the imbalance of msu concentration between the blood and the joint fluids, shedding of the msu crystal coatings, and the gout attack. For proper use of allopurinol:

1. Do not initiate allopurinol during a gout attack because it will worsen and prolong the attack.
2. Initiate allopurinol in a gradually increased dosage with indomethacin or colchicine (for weeks or months) to prevent an attack.
3. If allopurinol is re-initiated after discontinuation, repeat steps (1) and (2) again to prevent an attack.