HOW I BEAT MY GOUT - AND YOU CAN TOO
  • How I Beat My Gout - And How You Can Too
  • Moving foot muscles to beat gout
  • Why Go On A Diet - And How
  • Who Is Wisterian Watertree?
  • Disclaimer - Not Medical Information
  • Alternative Medicines For Gout
  • Where does uric acid come from?
  • What are purines
  • Forbidden Gout Foods
  • Food for gout sufferers - tasting better than your old diet
  • The inflammation is causing the pain
  • The Danger Of Being Fat
  • What to do when the diet gets boring
  • Great foods for gout-beaters
  • Why Drinking Lots Of Water Works
  • The Goutbeater Program
  • What To Do When You Have A Gout Attack
  • Why Milk Flushes Out Uric Acid
  • The Signup Page
  • The Goutbeater Blog
  • Do Cherries Work Against Gout?
  • Why gout happens in your big toe
  • How much uric acid does your body contain?
  • Unboxing the UASure uric acid meter
  • Can you change the pH of your urine - and does it matter?
  • Why you should avoid sugar
  • Two weeks of measuring my uric acid
  • Your Heart And Gout
  • The Daily UA Variation
  • Why Fish Oil Has No Effect On Gout, And How I Know
  • Trying Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Gout-Friendly Recipes
  • Three months of measuring my uric acid
  • How Did The Apple Cider Vinegar Test Go?

Trying Rooibos Tea Next

I came across a mention in a Facebook group that said rooibos tea could help against gout. I have never heard that, but since my wife drinks it practically every day, I have a ready supply.
Rooibos tea is one of the "exotic" brands of tea, made from the Rooibos bush, which grows in the area east of Cape Town in South Africa (to simplify the geography lesson). It contains no caffeine which may be a minus if you are fighting hyperuricemia to beat gout, but it contains more polyphenols (another useful chemical) than red wine. The taste is not too different from black tea, with a slight twist towards orange and pomerance. I could easily drink as much as my wife and more, and tea is an excellent way to stay hydrated. If you skip any added sugar, including honey.
I would not be trying a supplement unless there was some evidence that it works against gout, either by lowering uric acid production (like allopurinol), by reducing the uric acid that is already produced in your blood; or by improving the execretion of uric acid. All three are ways to decrease the amount of uric acid in your body (even though there is very little to start with). If you have too much uric acid for too long time, your body will not know what to do with it and stores the uric acid as crystals in your ligaments; the storage can grow into tophi (bulges on your limbs) which contain uric acid crystals and can harden over time.
So how is rooibos tea supposed to reduce uric acid, and is there any evidence for it? Googling "rooibos uric acid" gives you a huge heap pf tea merchants and health advice pages who claim there is evidence for some effect, but as usual they do not quote any studies or provide links to the supposedly existing scientific evidence.
Why is this important? Why is it not enough that "some people" say it was good for them?
Apart from "some people" claiming that dangerous actions like injecting bleach can have positive health effects, there is no attempt at objective measurement. And that is important - otherwise there is no way to compare the results.
Never believe medical advice from a software engineer. Always read the disclaimer and talk to your doctor. Links on this site may be affiliate links, which helps me keep it available since I get a small amount when you buy anything, and provides you with great products.
  • How I Beat My Gout - And How You Can Too
  • Moving foot muscles to beat gout
  • Why Go On A Diet - And How
  • Who Is Wisterian Watertree?
  • Disclaimer - Not Medical Information
  • Alternative Medicines For Gout
  • Where does uric acid come from?
  • What are purines
  • Forbidden Gout Foods
  • Food for gout sufferers - tasting better than your old diet
  • The inflammation is causing the pain
  • The Danger Of Being Fat
  • What to do when the diet gets boring
  • Great foods for gout-beaters
  • Why Drinking Lots Of Water Works
  • The Goutbeater Program
  • What To Do When You Have A Gout Attack
  • Why Milk Flushes Out Uric Acid
  • The Signup Page
  • The Goutbeater Blog
  • Do Cherries Work Against Gout?
  • Why gout happens in your big toe
  • How much uric acid does your body contain?
  • Unboxing the UASure uric acid meter
  • Can you change the pH of your urine - and does it matter?
  • Why you should avoid sugar
  • Two weeks of measuring my uric acid
  • Your Heart And Gout
  • The Daily UA Variation
  • Why Fish Oil Has No Effect On Gout, And How I Know
  • Trying Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Gout-Friendly Recipes
  • Three months of measuring my uric acid
  • How Did The Apple Cider Vinegar Test Go?