Folks
As we all get older it's time for those who haven't been looking after themselves to do so before it's too late.
Haemochromotosis can be a silent assailant. It's a high level of iron in the blood that, over time, will damage the liver and ultimately lead to liver failure
It's estimated that perhaps 1:5 of the Irish population carry the gene - so in some quarters it's know as the Irish or Celtic curse.
I was diagnosed in 2011 - well before any damage was done so I keep a constant eye on iron levels by having blood tests and getting 'drained' maybe once/twice a year.
So if you are in doubt go the GP/doctor and ask for the test and check your iron levels. Before it's took late.
Lots of information out there - I won't post any links.
Check out Dr Ben Lynch in Washington, USA. He does a lot of work on genes and fixing genes. Has a new book out next week too called dirty genes.
Very interesting stuff and lots of information on combating inherited tendencies/sickness from generations and how to "clean" them up...
Coincidently I only just got bloods done last week and was told my Iron levels were slightly high. A 48 on whatever scale they use.
Have to go back in a few months to get them checked again.
You'll have to stay off the Guinness SS; maybe Coors Light could become your tipple. :P
Quote from: Billys Boots on January 25, 2018, 01:12:22 PM
You'll have to stay off the Guinness SS; maybe Coors Light could become your tipple. :P
I thought it was because he was a babe magnet.
Mate of mine was diagnosed a couple of years back and like SS he just goes in to get blood taken periodically and he's sound. My bloods are checked regularly so I'm not in any danger of it getting missed.
Quote from: magpie seanie on January 25, 2018, 01:41:48 PM
Mate of mine was diagnosed a couple of years back and like SS he just goes in to get blood taken periodically and he's sound. My bloods are checked regularly so I'm not in any danger of it getting missed.
It's ferritin levels in the blood which you need checked. It wouldnt be a normal test when you are getting bloods checked. The extra iron in your blood causes loads of issues if not caught. Bad blood = loads of problems
Obvious enough I suppose
I was diagnosed with it around the age of 40. It was accidentally found in a routine blood test. Had no symptoms. Meant getting blood taken once a week for 6 months which was a pain but since then it's been once or twice a year so very manageable. Sadly, people have died with it in older age before being diagnosed. Life long non drinkers with liver problems etc.
I'm afraid I also have the condition and was damn lucky that it was discovered before it would have been too late to avoid serious organ damage. Ferritin is the bucko to watch out for and a simple bloodiest will determine if one carries the gene or not.
Problem is gps don't a a rule include it in the list of conditions they check for so there's no harm in asking whoever gp you go to that you'd like to have a ferritin test carried. He/she should be able to do it there and then. The average level for a healthy adult is about 100 on the scale used.My level had got to 2,250 before it was discovered, by chance I might add. To get the level down to within the normal range meant weekly visits to the hospital where I had roughly a pint of blood drawn off for more than two years.
I've been lucky I suppose that my case was discovered before it was too late to prevent organ damage but it meant two years lying on a trolley and being unable to move for an hour or more while the blood was being removed.
I'm told that's what killed Joe Dolan and the older Brian Lenihan as well.
I always thought SS was a "Man of Iron", now I know he overfloweth.
My levels never got that high Lar but I have heard horror stories from my doctor. You were lucky to catch it as that is into the serious scale. That was some ordeal....Over 100 pints to get the levels down!! I had about 20 I think. I went off public and went private as Vincents in Dublin was swamped and it was damn hard getting a slot. Luckily as soon as I went private the VHI started covering it.
My GP, old school enough, claims young lads are drinking more and starting at an earlier age they 'we' used to so they could have irreparable damage done by their mid 30s to their liver.
One 26 year old he saw has a Ferritin level of 3,500 which is Chernobyl scale. He will almost certainly need a transplant unless radical lifestyle changes are put into effect.
For the sake of a few bob will ye all get a blood test done to check your ferritin levels. Call it the 'new national league starting' resolution.
Edit - LOL Main Street......getting rusty now that I am over 50 :-[
What levels are ye talking about?
I was told my levels of iron were 48 and this was apparently slightly high but ye are talking about levels in the thousands?
LL, 48 isn't overly high, but get yourself checked out in 6 months time. If it shoots up to 60 or 70 get the gene test done.
My ferritin level was around 800 when i was diagnosed. Not that bad compared to others who have been in the thousands.
Anyone know what is the earliest age children can get tested?
Quote from: Armamike on January 25, 2018, 04:12:10 PM
LL, 48 isn't overly high, but get yourself checked out in 6 months time. If it shoots up to 60 or 70 get the gene test done.
My ferritin level was around 800 when i was diagnosed. Not that bad compared to others who have been in the thousands.
Anyone know what is the earliest age children can get tested?
My GP said it was borderline high but to recheck in a few months.
60-70 is not high but he may not have been referring to ferritin.
Best raise it specifically next time he has the rubber glove on *snap* :o
As far as I know, drink and and all that goes with it can exacerbate the problem once it's present but a recessive gene is the hoor that cause it. People may be carriers if the gene but only those whose parents are both carriers can develop the condition.
It seems there's a higher incidence of haemochromatosis in this country and especially along the western seaboard than anywhere else on Earth. That's put down to the over-reliance on spuds in generations gone by. The Celtic Curse is another name for this problem.
It's hard to believe that so little was known about this problem until recent times. In extreme cases, the sufferer's skin will turn brown- somewhat like a red Indian and it was put down to diabetes. Some here have probably heard of bronze diabetes, which is fair enough as it's classed a form of diabetes. (Can't figure that one out.)
I believe that it was in 1996 that the problem gene was identified.
Anyway, my sincere advice to everyone is that the simple check required to check for this little bastard should be carried out.
Quote from: Lar Naparka on January 25, 2018, 05:26:34 PM
As far as I know, drink and and all that goes with it can exacerbate the problem once it's present but a recessive gene is the hoor that cause it. People may be carriers if the gene but only those whose parents are both carriers can develop the condition.
It seems there's a higher incidence of haemochromatosis in this country and especially along the western seaboard than anywhere else on Earth. That's put down to the over-reliance on spuds in generations gone by. The Celtic Curse is another name for this problem.
It's hard to believe that so little was known about this problem until recent times. In extreme cases, the sufferer's skin will turn brown- somewhat like a red Indian and it was put down to diabetes. Some here have probably heard of bronze diabetes, which is fair enough as it's classed a form of diabetes. (Can't figure that one out.)
I believe that it was in 1996 that the problem gene was identified.
Anyway, my sincere advice to everyone is that the simple check required to check for this little b**tard should be carried out.
A Red Indian :) I think I hear the PC Police sirens already :)
Quote from: laoislad on January 25, 2018, 04:06:12 PM
What levels are ye talking about?
I was told my levels of iron were 48 and this was apparently slightly high but ye are talking about levels in the thousands?
Was it iron (ferritin) levels or Haematocrit (which is the number of red blood cells)? Just asking because for men, haematocrit is usually less than 45%/0.45 so 48 would be slightly high alright. If it's that, it is definitely well worth keeping an eye on.
My brother was diagnosed with it about 10 years ago and told the rest of us to get tested as it is likely that we could have it too. I tested positive with the specific test (other brother and sister negative) but my iron levels have remained normal. Get it regularly checked now. Doc tells me I could go the rest of my life without the iron levels rising even though I tested positive. Does not bother me in the slightest.
there's no way that it could be caused by over reliance on spuds
sure they're only in ireland 350 years
thats 7 generations
Quote from: manfromdelmonte on January 25, 2018, 07:30:41 PM
there's no way that it could be caused by over reliance on spuds
sure they're only in ireland 350 years
thats 7 generations
The weight of academic research would be against you there.
Bear in mind that the condition wasn't discovered, for the want of a better word, until 1996.
Before in mind that the problem was classed as Bronze Diabetes or maybe a load of other maladies as well.
Quote from: manfromdelmonte on January 25, 2018, 07:30:41 PM
there's no way that it could be caused by over reliance on spuds
sure they're only in ireland 350 years
thats 7 generations
Would that not make it more likely to cause issues? i.e that we are heavily reliant on a food that has been introduced very recently?
Is this something that would be flagged when you give blood?
Quote from: Lar Naparka on January 25, 2018, 10:18:31 PM
Quote from: manfromdelmonte on January 25, 2018, 07:30:41 PM
there's no way that it could be caused by over reliance on spuds
sure they're only in ireland 350 years
thats 7 generations
The weight of academic research would be against you there.
Bear in mind that the condition wasn't discovered, for the want of a better word, until 1996.
Before in mind that the problem was classed as Bronze Diabetes or maybe a load of other maladies as well.
Afaics, there is very little research on the connection between over reliance on spuds in mid 19C and present day incidence of hemochromatosis.
Quote from: Never beat the deeler on January 25, 2018, 11:42:23 PM
Quote from: manfromdelmonte on January 25, 2018, 07:30:41 PM
there's no way that it could be caused by over reliance on spuds
sure they're only in ireland 350 years
thats 7 generations
Would that not make it more likely to cause issues? i.e that we are heavily reliant on a food that has been introduced very recently?
Is this something that would be flagged when you give blood?
It's not the reliance on spuds per se but other directly related factors from the 19C, poverty, dire poverty, lack of nutrition, general poor health.
The medic who speculated on the celtic connection is just exploring various factors http://irishamerica.com/2013/08/the-great-hunger-and-the-celitc-gene/
Due to dire circumstances, the people could have been over reliant on carrots and a similar genetic susceptibility would still be passed on to the children.
The more the genetic diversity in parents, the more that genetic taint gets weakened down through the generations. Lack of genetic diversity is flagged as a contributing factor with this haemochromatosis, just as lack of genetic diversity in random smaller communities is a factor with different genetic susceptibilities in that group.
Both parents could have this imprint in their dna, have no symptoms after middle age, but their children could be more susceptible to developing the disease due to the genetic coupling of the parents.
That article also flags other issues which could exacerbate the susceptibility in a carrier, who otherwise would not have developed the disease.
as I said.
speculation.
its much more likely to be due to a condition carried by the first people who came out of africa and settled along the rich coastlines of Europe
or those who first came to Ireland after the ice age
Quote from: hardstation on January 27, 2018, 09:39:16 AM
The Iron Age would make way more sense.
no real evidence for movement of people to Ireland.during the iron age