Ask The Doctors: January 2019

There's a common belief that gout is caused by overindulging in foods high in purines, such as red meat, seafood and alcohol. This is because purines break down to uric acid, which is the substance that at high levels in the body can lead to gout. But it's not that simple. In fact, a recent study, published in the journal BMJ (October 2018), found that genetics was far more likely to be responsible for variations in uric acid levels than food. High-purine foods raise uric acid levels only a very small amount.