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Daddy's Genes
The Invisible Inheritance
By Johnathon Allen
"I often worry about my son Dylan," says Eric Alan, a radio announcer and prostate cancer survivor from Ashland, Ore. "I would never want him to go through the terror of cancer, but I know that he has a highly increased likelihood of it due to his family heritage. My grandfather died of cancer and, when I was diagnosed, I thought for sure I wouldn't live to have kids. Now that I have a son, I'm terrified all over again."
"Having a 'genetic predisposition' to a disease doesn't guarantee that a person will develop it, only that they have a latent susceptibility to the disease at a genetic level," Hall says. "The disease may be activated under certain conditions such as high stress, smoking or poor diet, but it can also be routed by healthier lifestyle choices."
"The best thing I can do for my son is say 'Hey, this happened to me, and it could happen to you too, unless you do something about it,'" Alan says. "Ultimately, it will be up to Dylan. All I can do is educate and encourage him to be as healthy as possible."
Remember that upbringing and environment also play a significant part in the outcome of your children's lives. "Children with a genetic inheritance of high intelligence, for example, still have to receive a solid education, and likewise, a child that may innately have a more difficult time learning can still excel if given the right opportunities and education," says Hall. "Just because something is written in your genes, doesn't necessarily mean that it's written in stone."
