How Does Your Cultural Background Affect Longevity
How does my cultural background affect my health/ longevity.) (What diseases am I susceptible to?)
When I first started doing research, I decided I would break this paper up by my different backgrounds. I am Irish, English, French, Dutch, Japanese, and Native American. I’ll start with Irish. I searched, and searched, until I found a disease called Hemochromatosis. Also known as “The Celtic Curse,” “85% of all peoples of Irish descent have Hemochromatosis.” (Dougher, "Irish in the Blood") This disease is not just targeting the Irish, but many with some some sort of celtic descent. “While no one is immune to hemochromatosis, those with Irish, Scottish or British heritage have a significantly higher chance of carrying the gene mutation that …show more content…
Here are some statistics according to the article about this disease. “1 out of every 200 people of other descent have homozygous hemochromatosis.” (Dougher, “Irish in the Blood”) the Mayo Clinic explains this disease saying, it “ causes your body to absorb too much iron from the food you eat. Excess iron is stored in your organs, especially your liver, heart and pancreas.” Too much iron can lead to life threatening disease such as problems with you heart lung liver and pancreas. Another common disease common among the Irish, and those of Celtic descent, is Celiac disease. “Celiac Disease, like lactose intolerance, has a genetic component and is related to the ingestion of specific foods.” ( CRONIN, CORNELIUS C., and FERGUS SHANAHAN. "WHY IS CELIAC DISEASE SO COMMON IN IRELAND?") These “specific foods,” are in their diet. This includes Barley, wheat, rye, etc; all containing gluten. Celiac disease (gluten sensitive enteropathy) is a condition of the small bowel, characterized by permanent intolerance to dietary gluten and by intestinal mucosal damage (Trier 1991; Marsh 1992; Goggins and Kelleher 1994). The most common symptoms …show more content…
I don’t know what kind of French I am specifically/, however, there is a disease common in the French. cord.nch-Canadian population called Tay-Sachs. “The mutations responsible for this disease are also more common in certain French-Canadian communities of Quebec.” That is according to Genetics Home Reference. An online database for genetic diseases and disorders. GHR also says, “Tay-Sachs disease is a rare inherited disorder that progressively destroys nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord.” The symptoms become very clear in infants after a few months. “The most common form of Tay-Sachs disease becomes apparent in infancy. Infants with this disorder typically appear normal until the age of 3 to 6 months, when their development slows and muscles used for movement weaken. Affected infants lose motor skills such as turning over, sitting, and crawling. They also develop an exaggerated startle reaction to loud noises. As the disease progresses, children with Tay-Sachs disease experience seizures, vision and hearing loss, intellectual disability, and paralysis. An eye abnormality called a cherry-red spot, which can be identified with an eye examination, is characteristic of this disorder. Children with this severe infantile form of Tay-Sachs disease usually live only into early childhood.” ("Tay-Sachs Disease." Genetics Home Reference. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2016. ) According to this same article, “Other forms of Tay-Sachs disease
When I first started doing research, I decided I would break this paper up by my different backgrounds. I am Irish, English, French, Dutch, Japanese, and Native American. I’ll start with Irish. I searched, and searched, until I found a disease called Hemochromatosis. Also known as “The Celtic Curse,” “85% of all peoples of Irish descent have Hemochromatosis.” (Dougher, "Irish in the Blood") This disease is not just targeting the Irish, but many with some some sort of celtic descent. “While no one is immune to hemochromatosis, those with Irish, Scottish or British heritage have a significantly higher chance of carrying the gene mutation that …show more content…
Here are some statistics according to the article about this disease. “1 out of every 200 people of other descent have homozygous hemochromatosis.” (Dougher, “Irish in the Blood”) the Mayo Clinic explains this disease saying, it “ causes your body to absorb too much iron from the food you eat. Excess iron is stored in your organs, especially your liver, heart and pancreas.” Too much iron can lead to life threatening disease such as problems with you heart lung liver and pancreas. Another common disease common among the Irish, and those of Celtic descent, is Celiac disease. “Celiac Disease, like lactose intolerance, has a genetic component and is related to the ingestion of specific foods.” ( CRONIN, CORNELIUS C., and FERGUS SHANAHAN. "WHY IS CELIAC DISEASE SO COMMON IN IRELAND?") These “specific foods,” are in their diet. This includes Barley, wheat, rye, etc; all containing gluten. Celiac disease (gluten sensitive enteropathy) is a condition of the small bowel, characterized by permanent intolerance to dietary gluten and by intestinal mucosal damage (Trier 1991; Marsh 1992; Goggins and Kelleher 1994). The most common symptoms …show more content…
I don’t know what kind of French I am specifically/, however, there is a disease common in the French. cord.nch-Canadian population called Tay-Sachs. “The mutations responsible for this disease are also more common in certain French-Canadian communities of Quebec.” That is according to Genetics Home Reference. An online database for genetic diseases and disorders. GHR also says, “Tay-Sachs disease is a rare inherited disorder that progressively destroys nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord.” The symptoms become very clear in infants after a few months. “The most common form of Tay-Sachs disease becomes apparent in infancy. Infants with this disorder typically appear normal until the age of 3 to 6 months, when their development slows and muscles used for movement weaken. Affected infants lose motor skills such as turning over, sitting, and crawling. They also develop an exaggerated startle reaction to loud noises. As the disease progresses, children with Tay-Sachs disease experience seizures, vision and hearing loss, intellectual disability, and paralysis. An eye abnormality called a cherry-red spot, which can be identified with an eye examination, is characteristic of this disorder. Children with this severe infantile form of Tay-Sachs disease usually live only into early childhood.” ("Tay-Sachs Disease." Genetics Home Reference. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2016. ) According to this same article, “Other forms of Tay-Sachs disease