Amid the frivolity and floppy Guinness hats, Sheffield Irish Association is organising an event in the Town Hall to get the message across that Irish people in Britain have real health concerns that are often poorly understood – even among the Irish community themselves.
Kevin Meagher from Sheffield Irish Association explains:
"What many don’t realise is that Irish people are prone to serious illnesses above and beyond the rest of the UK population.
"Just as Afro-Caribbean people are more susceptible to sickle cell anemia, so, too, Irish people suffer from genetic, ethnic illnesses. And all too often these are not give the prominence they deserve.
"Illnesses such as coeliac disease (gluton intolerance) and hemochromatosis (excessive iron in the blood) disproportionately affect Irish people. These are extremely serious conditions which cause all sorts of other chronic illnesses.
"And when I say Irish people, I mean anyone of Irish origin.
"You can’t escape your genes and these problems simply cascade down the generations. So whether you’re second, third or fourth generation Irish you need to understand some of the serious health implications of being of Irish descent.
"So this St. Patrick’s Day our message is that being Irish is special for lots of reasons – including our unique health problems – so we’re inviting people to come along and find out more."
Sheffield Irish Association’s Health Awareness Day takes place on Tuesday 17th March (St. Patrick’s Day) in the Reception Rooms of Sheffield Town Hall starting at 11am. Stalls from a range of health promotion organisations will be exhibiting along with a health screening team from Sheffield Primary Care Trust on hand to provide "health MOTs" to those present.
