Anyone of Celtic ancestry should have their ferritin levels checked in case they have the iron storage disease called hereditary hemochromatosis. This condition causes much misery and limited life span from such things as liver cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes2, arthritis and other health conditions. Males are affected sooner than females whose iron levels are reduced by their menses and childbirth. After menopause they soon catch up (which is why their rate for heart disease increases then). Statistics show that 0.5% to 1.5% of the population (depending on racial mix) can have the gene for this disorder. It runs in families and members who do not have the condition are likely carriers of the gene. We have all heard the stories of a man who died of cirhossis of the liver in spite of being an avowed tee-totaller, and the mourners at the funeral whispering how he must have been a secret drinker to have had such a disease!! Not so, poor man was a victim no doubt of hemochromatosis and the massive amount of iron stored in his liver.
