What do diabetes, impotence, heart disease and liver cancer have in common? They can all be caused by a common, inherited disorder called hemochromatosis.

This iron overload disease affects around 1.5 million Americans, and probably accounts for 15 percent of the cases of adult onset diabetes.

The good news is that the earlier hemochromatosis is diagnosed, the easier and more successful treatment can be. A simple cheek-swab test can tell whether you carry a genetic risk for hemochromatosis.