Soft drinks, fructose consumption, and the risk of gout in men: prospective cohort study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the relation between intake of sugar sweetened soft drinks and fructose and the risk of incident gout in men.


METHODS
Prospective cohort over 12 years.


METHODS
Health professionals follow-up study.


METHODS
46 393 men with no history of gout at baseline who provided information on intake of soft drinks and fructose through validated food frequency questionnaires.


METHODS
Incident cases of gout meeting the American College of Rheumatology survey criteria for gout.


RESULTS
During the 12 years of follow-up 755 confirmed incident cases of gout were reported. Increasing intake of sugar sweetened soft drinks was associated with an increasing risk of gout. Compared with consumption of less than one serving of sugar sweetened soft drinks a month the multivariate relative risk of gout for 5-6 servings a week was 1.29 (95% confidence interval 1.00 to 1.68), for one serving a day was 1.45 (1.02 to 2.08), and for two or more servings a day was 1.85 (1.08 to 3.16; P for trend=0.002). Diet soft drinks were not associated with risk of gout (P for trend=0.99). The multivariate relative risk of gout according to increasing fifths of fructose intake were 1.00, 1.29, 1.41, 1.84, and 2.02 (1.49 to 2.75; P for trend <0.001). Other major contributors to fructose intake such as total fruit juice or fructose rich fruits (apples and oranges) were also associated with a higher risk of gout (P values for trend <0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Prospective data suggest that consumption of sugar sweetened soft drinks and fructose is strongly associated with an increased risk of gout in men. Furthermore, fructose rich fruits and fruit juices may also increase the risk. Diet soft drinks were not associated with the risk of gout.
Choi
Hyon K
HK
Arthritis Research Centre of Canada, Department of Medicine, Vancouver General Hospital, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1L7, Canada.
Curhan
Gary
G
D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects; D001628:Beverages / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005632:Fructose / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006073:Gout / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male
D005632:Fructose