November 21, 2005

To encourage family health awareness, Michigan Surgeon General Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom and the Michigan Department of Community Health will join the U.S. Surgeon General in a national public health campaign to promote the second annual Family Health History Day on Thanksgiving Day, November 24.

“Families traditionally gather at Thanksgiving,” Wisdom said. “This campaign provides a good opportunity over the holidays to talk about diseases and health conditions that run in the family.”

Knowing one’s family health history is a vitally important tool toward improving preventative health practices. Sharing this information allows families to work with their health care providers to make important lifestyle changes such as increased activity and low fat eating habits to prevent or delay the onset of such illnesses as heart disease or diabetes in individuals with a known family history of these conditions.

Family health history is any information pertaining to general health conditions and diseases in grandparents, parents, siblings, children, and more distant relatives. It reflects all the factors that influence health and are often shared by family members, such as lifestyles, behaviors, ethnicity, traditions, cultures, religions, social supports, and environments as well as genes.

“While the family health history holds important clues to a person’s present or future health, it is an underutilized tool among Michigan families,” Wisdom said.

Wisdom encourages Michigan residents to make family health a new tradition this holiday season by taking these simple steps:

· Chew the fat: There is always plenty of conversation at family gatherings, so be sure to steer the topic toward your family’s health history.

· Write it down: Take time to document what you learn during family gatherings.

· Spread the word: Don’t keep what you learn to yourself. Share it with other family members, update it regularly and pass it on to your children and grandchildren.

· Inform health care provider. Knowing your family health history can help you and your health care provider determine the timing and frequency of necessary screening tests (such as blood pressure or mammograms).

For a fun and easy way to create a portrait of your family’s health, visit www.hhs.gov/familyhistory/ to download the “My Family Health Portrait”, a free electronic tool. For more information on family health history, please visit the Michigan Genetics Resource Center at www.MIGeneticsConnection.org. To learn more about adopting a healthier lifestyle during the holidays and all year round, check out www.michiganstepsup.org.