Health Centre

October 29, 2009

Drinking plenty of water and skim milk may reduce Gout

There's a new reason to drink plenty of water and skim milk: Both may help to prevent painful gout attacks, new studies show. Gout, a type of arthritis that occurs most frequently in overweight, middle-aged men, is caused by the buildup of uric acid and needle-like crystals in the joints.

While there is certainly a genetic link to the disease, there is no question that lifestyle is a key contributing factor.

One recently identified trigger for the painful attacks is dehydration. So researchers set out to determine if drinking water could be an antidote.

Results showed the more water they drank, the lower their risk of recurrent gout attacks. "For example, having five to eight glasses of water in the past 24 hours was associated with a 40% lower risk of having a gout attack, compared with drinking none or one glass of water in the past day," says Tuhina Neogi, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine.

Neogi stresses that people with gout shouldn't substitute water for other treatments their doctors prescribe.

The researchers collected blood and urine samples from 16 volunteers immediately before they drank soy or skim milk and then hourly over a three-hour period.

Results showed that after they drank soy milk, levels of uric acid rose 10% over a three-hour period. Drinking skim milk led to a 10% drop in uric acid levels. In comparison, Zyloprim, a standard medication used to treat gout, results in a 20% to 30% drop in uric acid, Dalbeth tells WebMD.

She credits a substance in skim milk called orotic acid that promotes uric acid removal by the kidneys.

Elaine Husni, MD, a rheumatologist at the Cleveland Clinic, says it's too early to make recommendations based on either study. "But water and milk are such common staples and they're something people can control."

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