I can't say that any food helps back pain, but will vouch for volumes of water for gout. When my husband came down with it, everyone came up with the old "rich man's disease", supposedly caused by too rich of a diet. Like many men of his generation (mid 60s and older), he really didn't drink a lot of water. His doctor told him 2 qts a day, minimum. Get that uric acid (I might be saying that wrong) flushed out of his system. He eventually did go on daily meds for the problem, but for awhile every morning I'd fill a 2 qt bottle with water, and he'd drink it all day and make sure it was empty before bed time (this is on top of any other fluids). The water made all the difference in the world. Eventually he'd start to recognise when he hadn't had the water without the pitcher. But even with meds, he feels it if he doesn't drink enough water consistently.