There are times when recorded physical family traits can be valuable.
In this day of medical wonderment and advancement, physical features,
and more importantly, medical allergies need to be recorded.
My Reinhardt family has several allergies and characteristics that are
worth tracking.
My father, Neil Reinhardt, (and my children) all were allergic to milk
as infants. My dad, born in 1910, supposedly weighed
15 lbs. when he was born, and weighed 14 lbs. on his first birthday, because
of this allergy. He was the second male born to Maggie Mahoney and
John Reinhardt who suffered from this allergy. Their first son died
when he was 6 months old.
Another interesting trait is an occasional tendency for a member of
the Reinhardt family to make an appearance in this world with eleven or
even twelve toes. This has been found in descendants of both Charles
and Joseph Reinhardt, so this is truly a Reinhardt trait.
Aspirin allergy also shows up in the descendants of John Reinhardt and
Maggie Mahoney. Maggie Mahoney Reinhardt suffered with severe migraines.
In 1990 my brother was diagnosed with Dupuytren’s contraction. Dupuytren’s
(pronounced du-pwe-trahns’) contraction is a fairly common condition that
occurs when the connective tissue (fascia) under the skin begins to thicken
and shorten. As the tissue tightens, it pulls the fingers down towards
the palm of the hand. Surgery corrects the problem.
At the time of his diagnosis, his doctor told him that this was a hereditary
defect, and after hearing this, one of my aunts discovered that she had
the same thing. After her surgery, her son too, was diagnosed
with this condition.
*** Interviews with Neil reinhardt,
Erika Gomez