Who Gets Gout?
Gout has affected a long list of notable people throughout the ages, including Roman emperors, Henry VIII, and Benjamin Franklin. Although more men get gout than women, it affects women, particularly after menopause. In the past, gout has been incorrectly associated with a rich person's diet; in reality, there are a number of contributing factors, and diet is only one of them. The first gout “flare” (attack) usually follows years of high levels of uric acid in the blood, a condition called hyperuricemia, which often has no symptoms. (Read more about the causes of gout.)
- An estimated 5.1 million people in the United States live with gout, according to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III, 1988-1994.
- Gout rarely affects children or young adults.
- Adult men, particularly those between the ages of 40 and 50, are more likely to develop gout than women.
- Most women experience gout after menopause and have other medical conditions, such as high blood pressure causing kidney problems, and are taking medication that affects their body’s ability to keep uric acid levels low. Most of these women also have joint damage, sometimes including inflamed “tophi”—large crystal deposits made up of uric acid.
- There may be a genetic link: many people with the condition have a family history of gout.