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For immediate release: November 23, 2004 (04-136)
Contacts:
Debra Lochner Doyle,
Genetic Services Coordinator 253-395-6742
Deanna Whitman, Communications
Office 360-236-4022
Knowing your family history can improve your health and may save your life
OLYMPIA ¾ Holidays are traditionally a time for family gatherings. This season, the Washington State Department of Health urges residents to take advantage of these get-togethers and learn about their family’s health history. One of the best ways to predict the possibility of developing a chronic illness is having a family history of that condition. Learning about your family’s health history will lend valuable clues about your potential health future.
"Genes play a role in whether you will develop conditions that run in your family, but so do your lifestyle choices," says Genetic Services Coordinator Debra Lochner Doyle, MS, CGC. "Knowing your family’s health history can determine risk factors and allow you to make lifestyle adjustments that can delay or prevent developing chronic illnesses that run in your family."
A tool (http://www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/mch/genetics/default.htm) to record your family’s health history is featured on the Department of Health Web site. The tool allows you to document illnesses that run in your family, such as cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, disabilities and other medical conditions. Once you have completed a family health history, share it with your physician. If your physician knows about your family’s history of disease, they will be able to help you make informed choices about health screenings, lifestyle changes and other prevention efforts.
The Department of Health is launching its family health history initiative to coincide with a similar national effort by the U.S. Surgeon General’s office.
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