Parenting Advice
6 Inherited Health Conditions
While tucking our sons into bed the other night, I was struck by how many
of their physical attributes they've inherited from my husband and me.
Eleven-year-old Nate has my heart-shaped face, large eyes, and cowlicky
hair, along with my husband's mouth and freckles. Six-year-old Nicky, on the
other hand, has the same green eyes and dirty-blond hair that I do, but my
husband's nose and chin. But those aren't the only things we've passed on:
Nate has acquired my propensity for headaches and hay fever, and Nicky got
my husband's eczema in a bad way. Of course, many chronic conditions run in
families, but family history alone doesn't guarantee that a child will
develop one of them. Instead, it signals increased risk. "Usually, it's a
combination of genetics and environmental influences that triggers a
condition," says Jennifer Shu, M.D., a pediatrician in Atlanta and coauthor
of Heading Home With Your Newborn. You can't change your kid's genes, but
you can get familiar with a few of the most common health problems that
affect families and learn how to protect yours:
Vision Problems
will the kids get them? Your child's view of the world could be quite
similar to yours -- literally. Nearsightedness, color blindness, and lazy
eye (amblyopia) are often inherited, says Stuart Dankner, M.D., a pediatric
ophthalmologist in Baltimore. If both parents are nearsighted, a child has a
25 to 50 percent chance. "Only females carry and transmit the gene for color
blindness, but usually only males have the condition," Dr. Dankner explains.
If the mother is a carrier of the gene, there's a 50 percent chance her son
will have it. signs they got nabbed: If your child complains of headaches, or often
squints or tears up, especially with reading, watching TV, or at the end of
the school day, it's worth having her vision checked. Children may not
complain about nearsightedness until they're school-age, but it can be
detected as early as age 3, says Dr. Dankner. That's when Crystal Smith's
son, Cameron, began squinting to see things. "I knew there was a strong
chance he'd have vision problems because my grandmother, aunts, mother, and
I all wear glasses, but I didn't expect it to happen so young," says Smith,
of Plainfield, NJ. Lazy eye can emerge during the first year, but it can be
difficult to catch unless the pediatrician screens for it. Don't worry too
much if your infant's eyes cross now and then -- almost all kids' do in the
first couple of months; if you notice crossing along with a difference in
pupil size after that, schedule an exam. As for color blindness, you'll
usually know by age 5.
what you can do: If eye problems run in your family (and actually, even if
they don't), it's smart to start regular eye exams with a pediatric
optometrist or ophthalmologist by age 1. This is especially important if
your family history includes needing glasses at a young age or if you
suspect lazy eye at any time. Early detection and correction of vision
problems can help a child feel and function at her best -- and, in the case
of lazy eye, which can lead to severely impaired vision if untreated, it
could even save her sight.
Eczema
will the kids get it? The odds are about fifty-fifty, the same as for
allergies. That makes sense given that eczema is actually a type of allergic
reaction. The condition can take parents by surprise, though, especially
when neither parent actually has it. "The tendency or predisposition to
allergic conditions is what's inherited, not the specific allergies," says
Howard Saal, M.D., director of clinical genetics at the Cincinnati
Children's Hospital Medical Center. However, eczema does have a couple of
specific triggers: Cold, dry environments can bring it on, as can highly
allergenic foods such as dairy and eggs, says Dr. Shu. Stress can play a
role as well: When young children's parents divorced or separated, the kids
experienced a threefold increased risk of eczema during the next two years,
according to research from the Technical University in Munich, Germany.
signs they got nabbed: Eczema is pretty hard to miss. The dry, itchy skin or red, rough patches usually form on the cheeks, insides of the elbows, and backs of the knees. And when it's severe (or when the child scratches and scratches), little pus-filled sacs can develop. Of the allergic conditions, this one is most likely to debut first, even during infancy.
what you can do: See your doctor to confirm your suspicions and to develop a maintenance routine to help prevent more breakouts. Usually, staying on top of moisturizing (opt for one that's fragrance- and dye-free) can go far in keeping the condition in check; to ease the itching and inflammation of a flare-up, your doc may prescribe a topical steroid cream. If despite your best efforts your child scratches so much that an infection develops, antibiotics are usually in order.
Migraines
will the kids get them? These debilitating headaches are often passed on:
Your child has as much as a 50 percent chance of developing them if one
parent gets them, and an even higher chance if both do.
signs they got nabbed: Symptoms often include some combination of throbbing
pain (usually in the front or sides of the head), nausea or vomiting, and
sensitivity to light or sound. Migraines typically show up around age 8, but
some kids get them much sooner; in young children especially, the head pain
is often associated with motion sickness.
what you can do: Do your best to identify your child's particular triggers
(it can help to keep a log of what he was doing and eating, as well as how
he was generally feeling, around the time the pain began). Common ones in
kids include fatigue, overexertion, changes in routine, certain foods (aged
cheese and processed foods like hot dogs and lunch meats are biggies), and
caffeine. Fortunately, kids' headaches are often relieved by going to sleep
or taking ibuprofen or acetaminophen. If the strategies provided by your
pediatrician don't bring relief, she may suggest seeking out a pediatric
neurologist, says Dr. Saal. After all, unrelenting pain can have a powerful
ripple effect on nearly every aspect of your child's life. In fact, a study
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that children with
frequent or severe headaches that go untreated have higher levels of
emotional, conduct, and peer problems than their headache-free classmates.
No wonder: Being a kid is hard enough without having to deal with pain.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
will the kids get it? There's a good chance. People who suffer from IBS are
more than twice as likely to have a first-degree relative with the same
symptoms, according to research from the University of Sydney in Australia."It's very common to see colicky infants whose parents have IBS or reflux,"
says Dan Levy, M.D., a clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at the
University of Maryland School of Medicine. "They may have a lower pain
threshold than other babies."
signs they got nabbed: The classic symptoms are frequent crampy abdominal pain or alternating bouts of constipation and diarrhea. IBS usually appears during the school years, but precursors, like colic, may be apparent earlier in a child's life. "There's also a big emotional component," says Tanya Remer Altmann, M.D., author of Mommy Calls. Flare-ups are common during challenging transitions in a child's life, such as going to school or even just attending a party he doesn't want to go to, Dr. Levy says.
what you can do: If you suspect your child has IBS, have him checked out by your pediatrician. "IBS is a diagnosis of exclusion," Dr. Altmann says. "We want to rule out the possibility that something more serious is going on, like inflammatory bowel disease." If the problem turns out to be IBS, it can usually be managed with lifestyle changes. That may mean avoiding certain foods that might be triggers, adding probiotics (the healthy bacteria found in yogurt), and/or teaching kids some stress-management techniques, such as relaxation exercises or yoga.
Allergies
will the kids get them? There's about a fifty-fifty chance they will if you
or your spouse suffers; if you both have allergies, there's an even greater
chance the kiddos will, too, says Dr. Saal. But don't expect them to be
sensitive to the same things you are. Remember, we pass on only the
susceptibility to allergies, which can manifest in myriad ways.
signs they got nabbed: Frequent colds, sinus or ear infections, or a
constantly runny, stuffy, or itchy nose can point to allergies. Same goes
for itchy eyes, rashes, or hives. And wheezing or a chronic cough --
telltale signs of asthma -- may be the biggest tip-off that your child is
destined to develop allergies because the two conditions so often go hand in
hand.
what you can do: If any of these symptoms appear -- as they often do between
the ages of 3 and 5 -- tell your pediatrician. For mild cases, he may
suggest medications such as antihistamines (wait for the okay before giving
one) and/or prescription nose drops, which may provide ample relief; if they
don't, or if your child has severe symptoms such as trouble breathing, your
doctor will want to pinpoint the problem with allergy tests -- either the
skin-prick or blood-test type. If needed, other medications and
immunotherapy (allergy shots) are available and can bring tremendous relief.
But sometimes it's a matter of finding the right approach for your family. "I have pretty bad allergies, and a few years ago, I started noticing that
my then six-year-old son had circles under his eyes and seemed tired and
snuffly all the time," recalls Diane Umansky, a mom of three in New York
City. "The pediatrician recommended antihistamines, but the two we tried
made him really hyper and interfered with his sleep in a major way. He
finally got relief after we got allergy-proof bedding covers and began
vacuuming religiously." In other words, do what works!
Emotions run deep
It's not just physical vulnerabilities that your child can inherit from you.
Certain psychological and emotional issues can also be a family affair. In
particular, there's a strong genetic component to attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder, as well as to several mood and anxiety disorders,
including depression, bipolar disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
While it may feel harder to reveal a history of mental health problems to
your pediatrician, it's important that you do. That way, if your child
develops certain warning signs, such as unusual sadness, irritability,
anxiety, inattention, or a change in appetite, sleep, or ability to enjoy
things, the doctor may be able to zero in on the cause -- and get your child
help -- a lot sooner.
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