His doctor checked him over and tells us that my husband has hemochromatosis. The digestive tract has a border patrol agent whose sole function is to let in only the precise amount of iron needed by the body. With hemochromatosis, an inherited illness, the border patrol agent falls asleep. Too much iron immigrates into the blood. The excess iron infiltrates many organs and can cause great havoc.
Iron migrates into the liver.
If iron levels remain high, cirrhosis develops. Iron in joints causes arthritis. An iron-saturated heart becomes a feeble pump. Your husband's two symptoms fit the picture of hemochromatosis. Iron could have invaded the pancreas and caused diabetes.