If you have a first- degree family member with asthma, it is more likely that you might develop asthma than someone who has no family history of this beathing disorder. A child is twice as likely to get asthma as someone who does not have a history of the condition in the family. A child’s risk of developing asthma is increased four times if both parents and/or a grandparent have the disease. The likelihood of developing asthma is also significantly increased by having asthmatic parents and siblings. Significantly more children with asthma were found to have a grandparent with the condition.
The likelihood that you may get asthma can also depend on whether you are a boy or a girl and also your age. Before puberty, boys have a twofold increased risk of developing asthma compared to girls. However, girls are more likely to develop asthma after puberty.
Due to the complexity of triggers that cause asthma, we still cannot anticipate likelihood of developing disease based on family history alone.
Asthma may not be inherited in one of these ways and a person may develop asthma without any family history. In other words, neither the mother nor the father nor both directly contribute to the development of asthma. Your children will be more likely to develop asthma, eczema, or allergies if either parent has a history of any of these disorders. One must keep in mind that a number of genes have been linked to a higher risk of developing asthma. It must also be kept in mind a child’s exposure to specific environmental factors will also be a factored into the likelihood of developing disease. Because of this, some individuals who do not have any genetic risk factors for developing asthma may still develop ot in the future.