Multivitamin pills contain significant amounts of essential vitamins and minerals. Most of the components of multivitamins have not been evaluated for use in the improvement of gout. However, vitamin C has been tested in several clinical and laboratory studies and it may help to reduce the symptoms of gout attacks.
Uric Acid and Gout
Gout is a serious condition characterized by the sudden onset of intense joint pain. The first joint of the big toe is a commonly affected, sit but pain may also occur in your feet, ankles, knees, hands and wrists. Gout is caused by the accumulation of uric acid in your blood. This by-product of metabolism builds up when your body breaks down the purine molecules in foods. When uric acid concentrations rise too high, the substance cannot remain dissolved and forms solid crystals. These produce the pain in your joints.
Vitamin C and Uric Acid
A randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial on the effectiveness of vitamin C supplementation for gout was conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins University. All of the study participants were non-smokers. Patients received either placebo or a vitamin C supplementation of 500 mg/day for two months. Serum uric acid levels were significantly reduced in the group receiving vitamin C. At the end of the study, this group's average uric acid levels were approximately 20 percent of their initial values.
Vitamin Amounts
Researchers at Harvard University, Brigham and Women's Hospital and the University of British Columbia used data from the large-scale Health Professionals Follow-up Study to look for a link between vitamin intake and gout. They included 1,387 men without hypertension and with normal body mass index in this study. Participants were interviewed about their vitamin C intake from food and vitamins. Greater vitamin C intake was associated with a reduced risk of gout. No additional benefit was observed at levels higher than 500 mg of vitamin C per day.
Other Considerations
Boosting your vitamin C by adding a multivitamin may help lower your uric acid levels and relieve the pain of gout attacks. Talk to your doctor about which vitamin supplement is right right you. Take your supplement with a glass of water. The MayoClinic.com recommends that gout sufferers drink 2 to 4 liters of fluid each day and half of that should come from water. Avoid alcohol and limit your intake of meat, fish and poultry.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Gout
- "Rheumatology", New Insights Into the Epidemiology of Gout by Michael Doherty
- "Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatology", Gout and vitamin A intoxication: is there a connection?, by AR Mawson and GI Onor, 1991.
- "Arthritis and Rheumatology", The Effects of Vitamin C Supplementation on Serum Concentrations of Uric Acid: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial
