- 1). Study the health records of family members. Much of it will be verbal--unless someone in your family had the foresight to record illnesses, dates and other pertinent information.
- 2). Record the history of a family member's treatments or hospitalizations. For example, if your grandfather had a heart attack at age 65 and another at 68, record this information. If he died from a massive coronary, record this, too. Determine whether he inherited his condition or if lifestyle contributed in a major way.
- 3). Record a dominant disease or health condition in your family. If a grandfather has had a history of Crohn's Disease, cross reference him to his wife to see if she has any gastroenterological issues. An offspring could very well have a dominant allele, which would virtually guarantee that he or she will have the inherited disease.
- 4). Record all the children of the grandfather or grandmother who had a hereditary condition. See if any of them have the same or a related condition.
- 5). If a grandmother and mother had signs or proven ovarian cysts, endometriosis or other related conditions and you are having extreme problems with pain and symptoms, you could have a similar condition.
- 6). Keep your genotype family tree up to date. Record names and dates of medical issues. Cross referencing between family lines will help in the determination of hereditary conditions.
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