October 27, 2009 – Drinking water would help reduce gout attacks. This is what the results of a study reveal1 presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in the United States.
American researchers conducted a study with 535 patients suffering from gout. They found that subjects who drank 5 to 8 glasses of water per day had 43% fewer gout attacks than those who drank just one. People who drank more than 8 glasses of water (2 liters per day) benefited from around 48% protection.
Dehydration is a risk factor that can trigger gout attacks, the study authors explain. Since this disease is associated with high levels of uric acid in the blood, it is believed that an adequate intake of water could facilitate the elimination of this substance which comes in particular from the consumption of foods rich in protein.
In the study reported here, 78% of the participants were men: the concentration of uric acid in the blood is higher in men than in women. This difference would explain why men are more affected by gout than women. Although there are medicines to relieve gout, seizures recurrence is still common in treated patients.
Even taking into account the medications the participants took and their intake of purines (substances that can cause uric acid build-up), increased water intake had a protective effect against gout attacks.
Skimmed milk?
New Zealand researchers reported that consuming skim milk reduced uric acid production by 10% in healthy subjects, compared to soy beverage which instead caused a 10% increase in uric acid. . However, it is not known whether consuming skimmed milk would have a protective effect against gout. This preliminary comparative trial was conducted on 16 healthy men2.
Pierre Lefrançois – PasseportSanté.net
1. Neogi T, Chen C, et al. Drinking Water Can Reduce the Risk of Recurrent Gout Attacks. Presentation at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting, USA, October 2009.
2. Wong S, Gamble G, Horne A, and al. The Acute Effect of Skim Milk On Serum Urate Concentrations: A Randomized Controlled Cross-Over Trial. Presentation at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting, USA, October 2009.
