As you and your fiance prepare for your wedding and your life
together, the topic of health has probably come up. You might have
shared information about your own health or the health of your family.
This can be important information, as health problems that run in your
family may increase your own risk. But, have you ever stopped to think
about how much you really know about your family's health history?
Why family health history is important
Sharing family health information can make you and your fiance more
aware of health conditions that are common in your families and can
help you make healthy lifestyle choices. You may not think about family
health history until your doctor asks about it or until someone in your
family experiences a health condition, but it is important to gather
this information early in your marriage. As the Centers for Disease
Control notes, gathering and sharing this information with a health
professional can also help you identify what diseases you might be at
risk for and which health screening and prevention behaviors are most
important.
What you should know
According to the U.S. Surgeon General’s Family Health Initiative and the Centers for Disease Control you should:
Collect family health information from both your immediate family
(parents, siblings, children) and your extended family (grandparents,
aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews).
Ask about major medical conditions, age of disease onset, cause of
death, and age of death. You may also want to ask about difficulties
with pregnancies and the medications your family members are currently
taking. Your ethnic background is also important information to collect
as some groups of people are at greater risk.
For more information on sharing your family health history, see
Take Time to Share Family Health History Photo courtesy of Orpheus and Aphrodite (Atlanta)