Some Jews have OCD. Some are neurotic. And some are hypochondriacs. This article is for them.
Many of you have heard about Tay-Sachs Disease. It’s a hereditary disease that is prevalent in eastern European Jews. Turns out when the same 50 families shtup in a small Polish shtetl for 150 years, some genes end up showing themselves pretty fiercely.
Tay-Sachs gets all of the press. It’s well documented, and has a very Jewish-sounding name. Sachs was a researcher who helped discovery the hereditary disease. It’s just easier for people to remember.
Yet Riley-Day Syndrome also exists. It’s not nearly as common as Tay Sachs (1 in 250), but has the second highest prevalence rate with 1 in 3,700 Jews getting the disease. Some of the symptoms include:
- Breath holding spells (can lose consciousness)
- Constipation
- Decreased taste
- Diarrhea
- Dry eyes
- Feeding difficulties
- Inability to feel pain and changes in temperature (can lead to injuries)
- Long episodes of vomiting
- Poor coordination – unsteady walk
- Poor growth
- Repeated fevers
- Repeated pneumonia
- Seizures
- Skin blotching
- Sweating while eating
- Unusually smooth, pale tongue surface
And while you may have some of these symptoms, it is to schedule an appointment with your doctor. Odds are, you’re just lactose intolerant, have terrible sight, or are a klutz. At least hypochondria was SO last century. Excuse me while I swallow my all-natural horsehair vitamins.
