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HEALTHY YOU!: Learn the importance of knowing your family health history.
*Ever wonder why your health care provider asks so many questions about your family’s health history? The answer is very simple. Learning about your family health history is one of the keys to disease prevention and staying healthy longer. According to Medline Plus and the Center for Disease Control, your family history includes health information about you and your close relatives and is an important risk factor for problems like heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer. CDC explains a risk factor as anything that increases your chance of getting a disease.
Knowledge of family history can help predict risk because families share genes, as well as other factors that affect health, like environment, lifestyles and habits. Research shows that having a family member with a disease raises your risk, but it does not mean that you will definitely get the disease. Knowing that you are at risk gives you a chance to reduce that risk by following a healthier lifestyle and getting tested for specific diseases as needed. It is also recommended that you talk to relatives about their health background. Having copies of medical records and death certificates is also helpful.
The Department of Health and Human Services developed a list of questions and answers to help you get started. There are additional links at the end of these questions to further assist with your health research.
What is family health history?
Family health history refers to information about diseases and health conditions that affect you and your close blood relatives. Family health history is one of the most important risk factors for diseases like cancer, heart disease, stroke and diabetes. (A risk factor is anything that increases your chance of getting a disease.) Family health history information can be collected and recorded to help determine your risk of developing certain diseases.
Why is it important to know my family health history?
Family members share their genes, as well as their environment, lifestyles and habits. A family health history helps identify people at increased risk for disease because it reflects both a person's genes and these other shared risk factors. Knowing your family health history can help your doctor or other health professional predict your risk for developing diseases and help you make changes to reduce your risk.
How can knowing my family health history help lower my risk of disease?
You can't change your genes, but you can change behaviors that affect your health, such as smoking, inactivity and poor eating habits. People with a personal or family history of chronic disease may have the most to gain from making lifestyle changes. In many cases, making healthy changes can reduce your risk of disease even if you have already had the disease or if the disease runs in your family.
Another change you can make is to participate in screening tests, such as mammograms and colorectal cancer screening, for early detection of disease. Screening tests can also detect disease risk factors like elevated cholesterol and blood pressure, which can be treated to reduce the chances of developing additional health problems. People who have a family history of a chronic disease may benefit the most from screening tests that look for risk factors or early signs of disease. Finding disease early, before symptoms appear, can mean better health in the long run.
What aspects of family health history affect my risk of disease?
Everyone's family history of disease is different. The key features of a family health history that increase risk are:
Diseases that occur at an earlier age than expected (10 to 20 years before most people get the disease).
Disease in more than one close relative.
Disease that does not usually affect a certain gender (for example, breast cancer in a male).
Certain combinations of diseases within a family (for example, breast and ovarian cancer, or heart disease and diabetes).
If a family has one or more of these features, then the family history is an important risk factor for disease.
Sometimes, a pattern of disease in a family may be a sign of an inherited form of disease that is passed on from generation to generation. In these families, the risk for disease may be very high and disease may occur at young ages. Often a specialist trained in genetics can help determine whether someone has an inherited form of disease. Genetic testing may also help identify which family members are at risk. These family members can get screening tests and take steps to reduce their risk.
If I don't have a family history of disease, does that mean I am not at risk?
Even if you don't have a history of a particular disease in your family, you could still be at risk for the following reasons:
Your lifestyle, personal health history and other factors also influence your chances of getting a disease.
Your family could have a history of disease that you don't know about.
Your family members may have died young, before they had a chance to develop chronic diseases.
My mother had breast cancer. Does this mean I will get cancer, too?
Having a family member with a disease suggests that you may have a higher chance of developing that disease than someone without a similar family health history. It does not mean that you will definitely develop the disease. Genes are one of many factors that contribute to disease. Other factors to consider include lifestyle habits, such as diet and physical activity.
If you are at risk for breast cancer, consider following recommendations for a healthy diet and regular exercise. It is also important to talk with your physician about your risk and follow recommendations for screening tests (such as mammograms) that may help to detect disease early, when it is most treatable.
Because both of my parents had heart disease, I know I have "bad" genes. Is there anything I can do to protect myself?
First of all, there are no "good" or "bad" genes. Most human diseases, especially common diseases such as heart disease, result from the interaction of genes with environmental and behavioral risk factors that can be changed. The best disease prevention strategy for anyone, especially for someone with a family health history, includes reducing risky behaviors (such as smoking) and increasing healthy behaviors (such as regular exercise).
How can I learn about my family health history?
The best way to learn about your family health history is to talk to your family. Ask questions, catch up at family gatherings, draw a family tree and record health information. If possible, look at death certificates and family medical records to confirm the information you have collected.
What information should I collect and record in my health family tree?
The type of information to collect includes:
Major medical conditions and causes of death.
Age of disease onset and age at death.
Ethnic background.
General lifestyle information like heavy drinking and smoking.
Who are the most important relatives to include in my family health history?
Collect information about you, your children, siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and nieces and nephews.
What if I am adopted and can't find information about my family health history?
Not everyone has access or knowledge about every member of their family's health history, so there may be blank areas. If you are adopted, the challenge may also include accessing family medical information from birth parents. The National Adoption Directory Search is a resource that may help with this process. It offers information about searching for birth parents.
What should I do with the family health information that I collect?
After you collect and record the information about your family health history, you should share it with your doctor or health professional. Remember to keep your information updated, share it with your siblings and children and pass it on to your children so that they too will have a family health history record.
What will my doctor or health care professional do with the information?
Your doctor or health professional will assess your risk of disease based on your family health history and other risk factors. Your health professional may also recommend things you can do to help prevent disease, such as exercising more, changing your diet or using screening tests to detect disease early.
Will sharing my family health history with my doctor or other health professional be used to discriminate against me?
The family health information you share with your doctor or other health professional will be treated like any other health information in your medical chart. There are laws that protect the privacy of medical records. Learn more about privacy and your health information. (PDF)
Where can I find more information about family health history?
The following Web sites provide additional information on family health history:
The U.S. Surgeon General's Family History Initiative
CDC's Family History Website for the Public
Tibberly G. Ríchard served as an entertainment writer for EURweb.com for a number of years. She also served as an on air personality with RadioScope, the Entertainment Magazine of the Air. Ms. Ríchard currently does a weekly television segment called The Parents' Corner, and runs a consulting business. She received a BA in Mass Communications from Southern University A&M College , Baton Rouge , Louisiana and completed Masters Degree courses in Public Administration from Southern University, Baton Rouge , Louisiana and the University of Maryland , College Park . She also received a Certificate of Completion, Charles Hamilton Houston Law School Preparatory Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Summer Program.
Contact her via tibberlyrichard@eurweb.com, or tgr@vit-com.com. "My greatest joy is my two-year old ‘hand-full’ of a son Caleb W. Cox. He inspires me to be better in every aspect of my life. He is my reason for writing this column. I love you sweetheart. I thank God that you chose me!" Mommy.
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