Anemia anyone? Part of our Celtic heritage?

[Spartan]

Several years ago I was diagnosed with macrocytic anemia, aka pernicious anemia. The short of it is that my body no longer digests vitamin B-12 from the food that I ingest. Without B-12 the blood cells no longer carry sufficient oxygen, resulting in anemia and in the long term, permanent neurological damage. The treatment is B-12 injections and is 100% effective. I'm doing fine.

There is a hereditary factor. My brother also has low B-12 and is also receiving injections. Typically, the onset is age 40, with 60 being the average.

Doing some research, I found a statement that macrocytic (pernicious) anemia is prevalent among people with Celtic and/or Scandinavian ancestry. Prevalent, meaning that it shows up with a higher percentage among people with Celtic and Scandinavian ancestries than with people of other ethnic groups. It's still a small percentage of people, but not uncommon.

Since this forum probably has a large number of people with Celtic ancestry, (and a number of us who are in the age bracket) I am curious if there are others with this diagnosis.

[Pleater]

My father's father had pernicious anaemia in his later life, back in the 1960s. The B-12 injections were effective very quickly.

He was tiny - several inches shorter than my sister, who is 4 ft 11 and 1/2 inches - the half is important.

My father and brother had/have Dupuytrens contracture on the palm of one hand. That also is a 'Viking' trait - or at least Scandinavian.

So far all I have had is a scatter of bright copper coloured hairs in amongst the dark brown, and they have now turned grey.

And there is the temper.

Anne the Pleater

[Galician]

My mother, whose ancesters included Galicians, suffered from this. For years I wondered why she had to go to a doctor for B-12 shots instead of pills.

[gilmore]

...
My father and brother had/have Dupuytrens contracture on the palm of one hand. That also is a 'Viking' trait - or at least Scandinavian.

...:

Dupuytren's syndrome also runs in my family. My mother and I have it, hers at 96, being much worse than mine. I don't know where it came from---other than it is said to be more prevalent in Scandanavia---and her mother was a Gilmore whose family came from the Viking-ridden Hebrides, although that was over 250 years ago.

[Pleater]

Oh 250 years isn't even an eyeblink in the existence of a gene.

My father's family surname is Gillott - they will become extinct in the male line if my brother doesn't ever have a son - unless I have some older half brothers - my dad went to France, Holland and Germany with RAF bomber command, and always had thoughts of returning to visit...

Anne the Pleater

[kiltedsawyer]

I have also heard that "hemo-chromatosis," (spelling?) is more prevalent in persons of celtic and scandinavian heritage. This is a tendency to store too much iron in the blood. The result is usually a tendency toward lethargy at best and more serious problems of which I can't remember. I tested negative for this, guess I'm just lazy.

[ronstew]

I don't know how Celtic I am. But My haemoglobin is so high that my physician is keeping tabs on it.