Know and Create Your Family Health History

A family medical history is a record of health
information about a person and his or her close
relatives. A complete record includes
information from three generations of relatives,
including children, brothers and sisters, parents,
aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews,
grandparents, and cousins.

Talk to Your Blood Relatives
The first step in creating a family health history is to
talk to your blood relatives. The most helpful
information comes from 'first-degree' relatives --
parents, brothers and sisters, and children.
Information from 'second-degree' relatives --
nieces, nephews, half-brothers, half-sisters,
grandparents, aunts, and uncles -- as well as less
close blood relatives can also be used.
Questions to Ask
To start, make a list of relatives to contact. See if
there are any existing family trees, charts, or baby
books. Important questions to ask your blood
relatives include the following.
What is your age or date of birth?
Do you have any chronic conditions, such as heart
disease, diabetes, asthma, or high blood pressure?
Have you had any other serious illnesses, such as
cancer or stroke? (If you know of a specific disease
or illnesses in your family, ask about them, too.)
How old were you when you developed these
illnesses?
Have you or your partner had any problems with
pregnancies or childbirth?
Other questions to ask are:
What countries did our family come from? (Knowing
this can help because some genetic diseases occur
more often in certain population groups. Also,
different diets and living environments can influence
the risks of developing certain diseases.)
Has anyone in the family had birth defects, learning
problems, or developmental disabilities, such as
Down's syndrome?
What illnesses did our late parents or grandparents
have? How old were they when they died? What
caused their deaths?
Using the "My Family Health Portrait" Tool
Free print and online tools can help you create a
family health history. One tool is 'My Family Health
Portrait' from the U.S. Surgeon General. It helps
organize your family health history information. The
following instructions describe how to use the print
and online versions of this tool.
You can download and print out the print version of
'My Family Health Portrait' seen here and use it to
record information about your family's health. Once
you fill in the information, you can keep it for your
records, share the completed form with your health
care professional, or share it with family members.
You can also refer to it as you enter information into
the online version of 'My Family Health Portrait.'
Click here for the print version of 'My Family Health
Portrait.'
The online version of 'My Family Health Portrait'
seen here will organize your information into a
chart that resembles a family health history tree.
Information that you submit to the online version of
'My Family Health Portrait' stays private. It is not
shared with the government or anyone else. It is
best to gather information about your family health
history beforehand so that you will have it easily
available when you need to enter it.
Click here for the version of 'My Family Health
Portrait' that is maintained online.
You can also just use a blank sheet of paper to
draw your own family health portrait.
Handling Questions from Relatives
Your relatives will probably want to know why you
want information about their health. You can explain
that knowing what diseases run in the family can
help family members take steps to lower their risk.
These steps might include certain lifestyle changes,
medical tests, or choices of medicines. Offer to
share your health history when it is done.
Encourage relatives to create their own health
histories. The online Surgeon General's family
history tool makes sharing family history with
relatives easy.
Finding the Right Time to Talk
It's important to find the right time to talk about
family health. Family get-togethers like holidays,
vacations, and reunions might be good
opportunities. Some people may prefer to share
health information privately, in person or by
telephone. You can also contact family members by
mail or e-mail. Be sure to take notes or record the
conversations with a tape recorder or video camera
to help you remember.
Dealing with Gaps in Information
Don't worry if you cannot get complete information
on every relative. Some people may not want to
talk. Others may be unable to remember information
accurately. That's okay. Whatever information they
can provide will be helpful.
To get reliable information about relatives who have
died or who have mental health problems, you may
have to talk to other family members. Death
certificates, obtained from a state or county vital
statistics office, can often confirm the cause of
death. Funeral homes and online obituaries may
also have this information.
If a Family Member is Adopted
What if you adopted a child? A family health history
can help adopted children, but the information they
can get might be limited. Adoptive parents and
adoption agencies may have some health
information about birth parents, but many states
have laws that protect this information. A local
health or social service agency may be able to help.
One alternative for adopted people is to start a
brand-new family health history for the benefit of
their biological children and grandchildren.
Keep the History Up to Date
As children are born and family members develop
illnesses, add that information. It may take a little
time and effort, but this lasting legacy can improve
the health of your family for generations to come.