Learn Your Family Health History

We all know eating healthy foods, exercising regularly, and not smoking can help reduce our risk of disease. But family history might actually be one of the strongest influences for predicting the likelihood of heart disease, stroke, diabetes or cancer.

The word is out on the family link, but there’s more we can do to put that info to good use. Most Americans recognize the benefits of knowing what runs in the family. One survey found that 96 percent of Americans believe family history is important to their health. Yet the same survey showed only a third of us have ever tried to gather and write down our families’ health histories.*

We can’t change our genetic makeup but we can take steps to reduce our risk of developing health problems by knowing our family histories. Tracing the illnesses of your parents, grandparents, and other blood relatives can help your doctor predict disorders and recommend tests and screenings to help you better understand your health risks. Your doctor can also advise you on the best lifestyle habits that can reduce your risk of diseases that run in your family.

To begin collecting your family’s health history, try these tips.**

Write down the names of blood relatives you need to include in your history. The most important relatives to talk to are your parents, siblings, and children. Next, you may want to talk to grandparents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews and any half brothers and sisters.

Ask a wide range of health questions. Ask about any chronic diseases such as heart disease, and health conditions like high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes. Then ask about other serious diseases such as cancer or stroke. Also inquire about the diseases that deceased relatives had and clarify what caused their deaths.

Remember to ask about your relatives’ ages at the time they first developed health problems or at the time of death. Diseases that occur at an earlier age than expected (10 or 20 years before most people get them) can be signs of increased health risks for you.

Share with your family and with your doctor. Once you’ve recorded information, pass it along to other family members so they too can benefit from the health history or add more critical info to the family’s health record. Then talk with your doctor about any concerns you have or patterns you’ve noticed.

It’s All Relative
Women who have a family history of disease may have the most to gain from lifestyle changes and screenings. Get to know your family’s health history. It’s an important part of your lifelong wellness plan!

*U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
**Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.