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a study conducted by soochow university found that drinking habits are related togoutthere are significant gender differences in risk. the study used large-scale data from the uk biobank, tracking more than 400,000 participants for more than a decade, to reveal the impact of different types of alcoholic beverages on the incidence of gout in men and women.

gout is a common metabolic disease that is closely associated with elevated uric acid levels. alcohol consumption is thought to be an important factor affecting uric acid levels. however, most past studies have either focused on men or mixed data from both sexes, resulting in a lack of understanding of sex-specific associations. therefore, the main goal of this study was to evaluate the relationship between total alcohol consumption and specific alcoholic beverages and the occurrence of gout in men and women to fill the gap in existing research.

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this prospective cohort study recruited 401,128 participants from the uk biobank, aged between 37 and 73 years. at the start of the study, all participants had no history of gout. participants' alcohol consumption was recorded through questionnaires, and the occurrence of gout was tracked through hospital records. during the study, participants were followed up until december 31, 2021, and data were analyzed between august 2023 and june 2024.

the findings showed that higher consumption of specific alcoholic beverages was associated with an increased risk of gout in both men and women.for men, total alcohol consumption was positively associated with gout riskin men, a different pattern was observed in women. specifically, consumption of beer or cider was most strongly associated with gout risk, while consumption of champagne, white wine, and spirits also showed associations with an increased risk of gout.

specifically, regarding the relationship between drinking and gout risk, current research shows that for men, drinkers have a much higher risk of gout than non-drinkers (hazard ratio 1.69; 95% confidence interval 1.30 to 2.18). however, for women, there is no significant correlation between drinking and gout risk (hazard ratio 0.83; 95% confidence interval 0.67 to 1.03).

regarding total alcohol intake, alcohol intake was positively associated with gout risk in both men and women, with the association being more significant in men (hazard ratio, 2.05; 95% confidence interval, 1.84 to 2.30; hazard ratio, 1.34; 95% confidence interval, 1.12 to 1.61, in men);

significant differences were found between men and women in the consumption of specific beverages, with men consuming an average of 4.2 pints of beer or cider per week compared with 0.4 pints per week for women. consumption of champagne, white wine, beer, and spirits was associated with an increased risk of gout in both men and women, with beer or cider consumption being the most significantly associated with gout risk (hazard ratio, 1.60; 95% confidence interval, 1.53 to 1.67 for men and 1.62; 95% confidence interval, 1.02 to 2.57 for women).

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this study highlights the importance of considering gender factors when preventing gout. higher consumption of specific alcoholic beverages was associated with an increased risk of gout in both men and women, and the sex-specific association of total alcohol consumption may be related to differences in the consumption of alcohol types between men and women. this finding provides a new perspective for understanding the complex relationship between alcohol consumption and gout and may guide future public health policies and personal health management recommendations.

refer to

Lyu JQ, Miao MY, Wang JM, et al. Consumption of Total and Specific Alcoholic Beverages and Long-Term Risk of Gout Among Men and Women. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(8):e2430700. Published 2024 Aug 1. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.30700