Ybeth Bruzual, Generation to Generation
Most major health conditions -- such as heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, breast cancer and even colon cancer -- are commonly found from generation to generation.
Russell Balmer looks healthy enough, but if you look a little closer, he will tell you it is his grandparents who influence his health.
"My parents, my grandparents, all died of massive heart attacks," Balmer said.
Russell has a family history of heart disease.
"I'm concerned about my cholesterol and risk factors that may predispose me, as well, to having the same disease as my father, my uncle and my grandmother," Russell said.
Family members can often feel doomed to repeat family medical history, but geneticists say it isn't necessarily their destiny.
"Your genes tell you something about your future, but, they clearly don't predict it. There are lots of things that vary from generation to generation, from individual to individual, so your genes give you something to be concerned about, perhaps, but they don't predestine your health history," said Dr. Alan E. Guttmacher, of the National Human Genome Research Institute.
In fact, researchers say that in almost every case of the major conditions that commonly span family generations, risks can be significantly lowered.
"Even if there is a family history of heart disease, for instance, you can take steps -- like modifying your diet, like exercising, certainly like not smoking," Guttmacher said.
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