Inside Health

Dr Mark Porter demystifies the health issues that perplex us and separates the facts from the fiction. He brings clarity to conflicting health advice, explores new medical research and tackles the big health issue of the moment revealing the inner workings of the medical profession and the daily dilemmas doctors face. This week Mark examines the protocols for visitors to hospitals and asks whether there's any evidence that they help control the spread of infection - is there any science behind using the hand gels provided? Why do some hospitals ban flowers - and should you be able to sit on the hospital bed of your loved one?Martin Kiernan - Nurse Consultant in prevention and control of infection - helps to clear up the confusion. Inside Health discovers that gout - a condition associated with older portly men caricatured in cartoons and literature - is on the increase and striking much younger. And while it has been the butt of many a joke, it has never been a laughing matter - at least for those afflicted.A