Know your family's medical history: It may hold the key to living longer

In with keeping with September as Life Insurance Awareness Month

, here's some great information I came across recently and wanted to share with you.

While fitness and a good diet are significant in helping us stay healthy and live longer, scientists say our genetic traits and inheritance also determine our health and longevity. By keeping track of your family's medical history, your doctor may be able to detect diseases you're likely to develop before they get the best of you.

Whom should you ask to find out about your family's health/medical history? The best people to ask are your mother, father, siblings, aunts, uncles. If you do not know your biological parents or siblings, doctors suggest that you search for their death certificates, or talk with their physicians and access their hospital records.

What information should you document?

Causes of death

Diseases and disorders such as visual impairment, glaucoma, hearing impairment, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, cancers, depression, muscular dystrophy, Tay-Sachs disease, hypothyroidism, Down syndrome, etc.

Habits such as smoking, diet, alcohol or drug use, exercise, and fitness.

Where should you keep the information? Record your family's health/medical history in a journal. And if you'd like, create a chart or family tree listing any health traits under each person's name. Store the journal in a safe box with other invaluable records, such as birth certificates and home mortgages.

But remember to take the journal with you whenever you or your immediate family members are scheduled to see your family physician. Share all of your findings on your family's medical history with your doctor and record any new information after each physical.

All the Best!!

Michael

Know your family's medical history: It may hold the key to living longer

By: Michael Durand

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