8. The “rich man’s disease”, gout now affects more than one percent of the western population leading to heart failure, diabetes, and early death
A form of inflammatory arthritis, gout is caused by excessive levels of uric acid in the human bloodstream. Commonly a byproduct of diet, including the over-consumption of meat and fatty foods, gout results in the painful swelling of joints, particularly in the toes. Over time, gout significantly decreases the chances of long life among those affected, with as many as half dying noticeably earlier than otherwise. Historically regarded as the “rich man’s disease“, as only the wealthy were able to overindulge to the levels of excess required to develop gout, the first documented case is dated to 2600 BCE in Egypt.
Facing the threat of heart disease, diabetes, and kidney failure, available modern treatments typically revolves around anti-inflammatory steroids in conjunction with a radical change in diet and lifestyle. Today, gout affects between one and two percent of the entire Western population and is becoming increasingly common over recent decades. An estimated 5.8 million people were afflicted with gout as of 2013, with the rates of diagnosis more than doubling between 1990 and 2010. This resurgence of the outdated condition is widely ascribed to modern sedentary lifestyles and junk diets.