Can you have gout and be in the armed services of the US?

Answer 1

I was interested in joining the Air National Guard and just got off the phone with a recruiter and was told that I am disqualified from joining because I have a history of Gout and I'm on medication for it. I can't speak to whether or not you can stay in service if your Gout starts while you are in but it will keep you from joining as I learned today. If you are in the service and in an infantry profession and have Gout you need to seriously consider a lateral move into an administrative / support profession. The last place you need a Gout attack is when you're down range with your team depending on you! If you've never had a severe attack take it from me, the pain is unbelievable and is pretty much all you can think about. You can't even wear a sock on that foot never mind trying to walk around or putting any pressure on it whatsoever.