The increase in consumption of sugary drinks have been blamed for a surge in cases of the painful joint disease gout. Cases in the U.S. have doubled in recent decades.

New research shows that men who consume two or more sugary soft drinks a day have an 85 percent higher risk of gout. Fructose is most likely the type of sugar that is to blame.

The symptoms of gout include painful, swollen joints, mainly in the lower limbs. They are caused when uric acid crystallizes out of the blood into the joints. Previous research has shown that fructose increases levels of uric acid in the bloodstream.

Sources:
BBC News February 1, 2008