Why is it Important to Know Your Family Medical History?

That day Sean almost died when he met with a deadly accident. He was bleeding heavily and was soon taken to the hospital. All the expert surgeons and doctors were immediately called and he was taken to the operation theater. Doctors quickly glanced through his medical records. They were sure that the operation would succeed but very soon their confidence was ruined when they discovered that he was a suffering from a genetic problem of slow blood clotting. But there was no mention about this family medical history in his records. Due to the excessive blood loss, the situation became worse and they could not save him. You do not have to go through such brutal experiences to learn why is it important to know your family medical history.

Accidents or diseases never come knocking on your door. They come silently and if one is not prepared, they might become fatal. But how do you prepare yourself? Well, this is when your family medical history records come for your rescue. It is important to find out about your family medical history so that you can save yourself from various diseases and health disorders. People from the same families have many health factors in common such as genetic make up, environment, and lifestyle and so, their health status is generally similar and they are prone to succumb to the same health problems.

Benefits of Knowing Family Medical History

Diagnosing Medical Conditions
Knowing a family history helps doctors in diagnosing certain diseases effectively. In some cases, doctors are unable to find the root cause of the problems. At such times, your family medical records can give a clue of a probable causes.

Better Prevention
If the doctors are aware of a certain medical condition that is prevalent in your family members, they can advise you to get certain screenings or check ups done. This can save you from the same disease. Given below are some of the diseases which involve studying a family history in an individual case:

• Diabetes
• Cancer
• Asthma
• Heart Diseases
• High Blood Pressure
• Genetic Disorders
• Alcoholism
• Learning Disabilities
• Kidney Diseases
• Mental Illnesses
• Psychological Disorders
• Stroke
• Birth Defects
• Vision or Hearing Impairments

Some of the above diseases are silent killers and by the time the patient is affected a lot of time is wasted. That is why is it important to know your family medical history in advance. It allows you to take better prevention measures.

Effective Treatment
If the disease has already struck you, it is still important to know your family medical history. The doctors can prescribe you an effective treatment as per your family history. Sometimes your genes are allergic to some drugs or do not respond well to some drugs. Some medications or tests may have an adverse side effect on your health. Your family history can provide the doctors with hints about such details and you will be saved from wrong treatments.

Apart from this, it also helps you in identifying other members of your family who can be at risk of developing such conditions and calculating the risk of passing these conditions to your children. So, you know why is it important to know your family medical history. Now I will tell you about some of the ways you can know about your family history.

Documenting the Family Medical History

It is quite a tedious task to get your family health history but you won't regret it once you are through it. One of the best ways to get family history information is talking to your parents and relatives about their health. Family reunions are the best times to discuss the family health problems. You can ask each other following questions:

• What health problems you are suffering from?
• At what age you were first diagnosed with it?
• What challenges did you face while dealing with it?
• What tests or therapies you have undergone? Were they effective?
• Which treatment you followed? Was it safe, effective and were there any side effects?
• How long you took to recover?

These were some of the probable questions that you may ask. Do not forget to document them. You may write them down or tell your doctors during the next visit. Apart from asking the close family members, you may try to get their medical records from their doctors. If some of your family members have already passed away you may check their death certificates, family health insurance papers, or try to know about the circumstances under which they died.

With this information, you can take care of your health in a better manner. So find out your family medical history and inform your doctor about it to keep all the health problems at bay.