Gout is one of the more than 100 different types of arthritis.¹ Once called the “Disease of Kings” or “rich man’s disease,” the number of people suffering from gout is on the rise.

In England and New Zealand, the number of people evaluated at the hospital for symptoms of gout rose by 80 percent in the past decade.² In the past 50 years the incidence of gout has nearly doubled in the U.S.³

Like a window into your metabolic health, gout is an outward sign of what’s happening on the inside of your body. Symptoms of the condition, and long-term treatment, are related to your lifestyle choices and nutritional habits. In other words, you have some degree of control over your condition.

In 2011, gout affected 8.3 million, or 4 percent of Americans.⁴  Although the numbers of people diagnosed are rising, it may not be an accurate representation of the number of people who experience the condition each year.

Many people suffer from an episodic gout condition, experiencing several occurrences over their lifetime.⁵  However, according to Dr. Allen Anandarajah, an associate professor of medicine and a rheumatologist at the University of Rochester Medical Center, many don’t see their doctor for these periodic occurrences.⁶

This means the number of people who have gout each year could actually be as high as 10 percent of the population. Symptoms include:⁷

• Pain, often in the big toe, starting at night

• Warmth, swelling and redness in the affected area

• Both fingers and toes or feet may be affected

• Extreme tenderness in the affected joint

• Red or purple coloring on the skin over the joint

• Joint may appear to be infected

• Limited movement in the joint

• Skin may itch or peel as the gout resolves

Symptoms Are Related to an End Product of Metabolism

These symptoms are the result of uric acid crystal deposits in the joint space. There is evidence that these deposits are related to metabolic syndrome,⁸ a constellation of health conditions characterized by insulin and leptin resistance, central or abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, and a fasting glucose greater than 100 milligram per deciliter (mg/dL).⁹

Purine, a compound found in certain foods, contributes to energy metabolism and is a component in some co-enzymes. All cells require purine for growth and survival. The final compound in the breakdown of purine is uric acid.

Only humans don’t have the enzyme uricase that converts uric acid to a compound easily excreted in the urine. It’s the buildup of serum uric acid that is associated with the severity of your gout.¹⁰

When your metabolic processes controlling serum uric acid don’t function effectively, it can result in an overproduction of uric acid and crystalline deposits in a joint space.¹¹