{"id":39016,"date":"2026-01-15T07:00:58","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T07:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/?p=39016"},"modified":"2026-01-15T17:39:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T17:39:15","slug":"heart-disease-in-your-genetics-what-to-ask-family-and-what-it-could-mean-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/heart-disease-in-your-genetics-what-to-ask-family-and-what-it-could-mean-for-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Heart disease in your genetics? What to ask family &amp; what it could mean for you","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"<p>How well do you know your family\u2019s heart-health history?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/nihcm.org\/publications\/heart-disease-the-leading-cause-of-death-in-the-us-mini\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the U.S.<\/a> \u2014 and while lifestyle choices are a key risk factor, family history plays a bigger role than most people realize.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s pretty common for people to come in with heart disease or another serious concern, and it turns out that their parent or grandparent had heart issues, too,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/provider\/caroline-sensiba\/\">Caroline Sensiba, ARNP<\/a>, who specializes in cardiology at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulseheartinstitute.org\/\">Pulse Heart Institute<\/a>. \u201cKnowing whether heart-related conditions run in your family can help us evaluate your risk \u2014 and take action to prevent conditions before they happen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The following tips can help you explore your family\u2019s cardiovascular history \u2014 and encourage loved ones to take better care of their heart health.<\/p>\n<h2>How to compile your family heart-health history<\/h2>\n<p>Genes influence more than characteristics like hair color and height \u2014 they also affect your risk for certain diseases. Changes in genes, also known as mutations, can be passed down from one generation to the next and can sometimes increase the likelihood of heart-related problems.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.heart.org\/news\/genetic-tests-unexpectedly-find-genes-linked-to-heart-disease-now-what\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">There are currently over 40 known gene mutations<\/a> that may increase the risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular issues, according to the American Heart Association.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHeart disease actually refers to several different conditions that can affect the structure and functioning of the heart,\u201d Sensiba says. \u201cIn general, a person is two times more likely to develop heart disease if there\u2019s a genetic component involved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When heart disease of any kind is left untreated, it can lead to heart attacks and strokes and can even damage other vital organs like the kidneys.<\/p>\n<p>To better understand your risk for heart disease and other heart-related conditions, ask your parents if they, or other relatives, have had:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Heart disease of any kind<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulseheartinstitute.org\/conditions-treatments\/heart-conditions-we-treat\/conditions-we-treat-coronary-artery-disease\/\">Coronary artery disease<\/a> (the most common kind of heart disease)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulseheartinstitute.org\/conditions-treatments\/heart-conditions-we-treat\/conditions-we-treat-heart-failure\/\">Heart failure<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Heart murmurs or other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulseheartinstitute.org\/conditions-treatments\/heart-conditions-we-treat\/conditions-we-treat-structural-heart-disease\/\">structural issues<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulseheartinstitute.org\/conditions-treatments\/heart-conditions-we-treat\/conditions-we-treat-arrhythmia\/\">Atrial fibrillation<\/a> or other abnormal heart rhythms<\/li>\n<li>Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (thickening of the heart muscle)<\/li>\n<li>Familial hypercholesterolemia (a genetic cholesterol disorder)<\/li>\n<li>High cholesterol<\/li>\n<li>High blood pressure (hypertension)<\/li>\n<li>Diabetes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It can also be helpful to ask about the age of diagnosis and whether anyone in the family has experienced:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cardiac arrest<\/li>\n<li>Heart attacks<\/li>\n<li>Coronary thrombosis (blood clot in coronary arteries)<\/li>\n<li>Strokes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If multiple people in the family have experienced these events at a young age or died prematurely because of them (before age 65 in women or 55 in men), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jacc.org\/doi\/10.1016\/j.jacc.2012.06.018\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hereditary factors may be involved<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Wondering how to start the conversation with your loved ones? <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/health-questions-everyone-should-ask-their-parents\/\">Check out our article, Health questions everyone should ask their parents<\/a>, for tips about how to talk to family members about health history.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How well do you know your family\u2019s heart-health history? Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the U.S. \u2014 and while lifestyle choices are a key risk factor, family history plays a bigger role than most people realize. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty common for people to come in with heart disease [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":367,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[127,63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-healthy-living","category-heart-health"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Does heart disease run in your family? - MultiCare Vitals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Your genes can influence heart disease risk. 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Ask your parents these key questions and get tips for encouraging loved ones to take care of their heart health.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/heart-disease-in-your-genetics-what-to-ask-family-and-what-it-could-mean-for-you\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"MultiCare Vitals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/multicarehealthsystem\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-01-15T07:00:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-15T17:39:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/01\/adult_son_and_father-e1767658574633.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1167\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Meredith Bailey\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Heart disease in your genetics? 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