- Are mental illnesses hereditary?
- The risk of falling ill if a relative is ill
- Genetic tests - can they help to estimate the risk of a mental illness?
Finding out that a loved one suffers from some mental illness can be shocking for relatives. Relatives of the patient may have various concerns, which may concern not only the course of the disease and prognosis, but also whether they themselves are at an increased risk of developing the disease in such a case. Various tests are already available to help you learn more about your genes. Are there any that check if you are at risk of mental illness?
In recent years, more and more has been said about psychiatry, and the psychiatry of children and adolescents is especially often mentioned. The reason for this situation is, among others the fact that the frequency of various psychiatric problems is steadily increasing. According to the World He alth Organization (WHO), depression may soon become one of the most important he alth problems of the human population.
Mental disorders and diseases are less and less taboo nowadays. Many people, including those from the world of culture and art, openly mention the problems they struggle with. Just as in the past it was rarely mentioned that you go to a psychiatrist, more and more people now openly admit it.
The above-mentioned factors, as well as other factors, make more and more people learn that their friends or relatives have some mental disorders. The most disturbing situation is usually when a person hears that his loved one has been diagnosed with a mental illness. In such a case, the fears are not necessarily concentrated around the patient himself - relatives may worry that a similar problem will occur to them.
Are mental illnesses hereditary?
It has been mentioned for many years that genetic determinants are involved in the pathogenesis of various diseases. Some individuals are known to be genetic diseases (examples include cystic fibrosis, Huntington's disease, and Klinefelter's syndrome), while for others, scientists report that genes inherited from relatives may have some influence on their risk of developing them. We deal with the latter situation in the case ofdiseases and mental disorders.
The direct statement that mental illness can be hereditary is far from the truth. Certain genes are known, the mutations of which may be related to mental disorders (such a gene is, for example, the gene coding catechol-O-methyltransferase, COMT), but even the burden of specific mutations does not mean that the patient will sooner or later develop any of the individuals from the field of interest in psychiatry.
The pathogenesis of mental disorders and diseases is definitely multifactorial - their occurrence is influenced by various environmental factors, as well as factors affecting the body in the prenatal period or various stressful events experienced during life.
A certain predisposition to mental disorders can, however, be acquired together with genes inherited from parents. Ultimately, it can be said that genes can influence the risk of these individuals, but definitely genetic conditions alone do not determine the occurrence of mental illness.
The risk of falling ill if a relative is ill
The conclusions of various studies, which concerned the relationship between genetic conditions and mental diseases, are quite interesting. Just as the risk of depression is not entirely clear when other family members suffer from it, so much more specific data are presented in the case of other individuals.
Genes can play a role in one of the most serious mental illness - schizophrenia. It turns out that in a situation where one of the parents suffers from it, the risk that his child develops it may be around 13%. This risk - which is not surprising - increases significantly when schizophrenia occurs in both parents and can then reach almost 50%.
A noticeable correlation between genetic determinants and the risk of mental disorders also exists in the case of autism spectrum disorders and ADHD.
When someone in the family struggled with autism, the risk of developing the problem in another child from the same family may be around 8%. In a situation where the child's parent during adolescence suffered from ADHD himself, the risk of hyperkinetic disorders in his offspring may be - compared to the general population - increased by up to 7 times.
Genetic tests - can they help to estimate the risk of a mental illness?
Realizing that genes have some influence on the risk of developing mental disorders, many people whose relatives are receiving treatmentpsychiatrist, may consider performing appropriate genetic testing. In such a case, different goals may be guided by those who consider such research. Some of them may wish to satisfy their curiosity, while others may make their life decisions (e.g. getting married or having children) dependent on whether they have an increased risk of developing a mental illness.
In the end, various companies offer the possibility of doing really different genetic tests. However, there are currently no studies that would make it possible to unequivocally estimate the risk of developing a mental illness.
Scientists are looking for genes related to entities of interest in psychiatry. However, it will likely be some time yet before any commercial testing becomes available.
At the moment, there are simply no relevant, qualitatively reliable tests. Therefore, it is not worth letting yourself be tempted by the offers of some mysterious companies that offer the alleged possibility of performing tests, thanks to which it will be possible to find out the risk of developing a mental illness.