By Barry Unger
Washington, D.C.
03 January 2006
 
watch Sibling report

A new study suggests siblings can share a high risk factor of heart disease. VOA's Amy Katz has more.

Dr. Joanne Murabito  
  
Studies have found health problems, including heart disease and diabetes, can be hereditary. But a new study by Dr. Joanne Murabito and her colleagues at the Framingham Heart Study, an organization in Massachusetts, has found that people with a sibling who has heart disease are at a higher risk factor for the same illness.

"Having a sibling with cardiovascular disease increases your risk for a heart attack by as much as 45 percent compared to people without a sibling with cardiovascular disease," said Dr. Murabito.

  
  
The study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, followed 2,500 heart-healthy people who had siblings with heart disease.

"We followed them for eight years,” said the doctor, “looking for the occurrence of a cardiovascular event, such as a heart attack, stroke or blockage in the arteries in their legs."

The study also found there is a higher risk factor in sibling cardiovascular disease than parental cardiovascular disease.
 

These sisters admit that they rarely share health information, but the study shows the benefits of doing so   
  
Dr. Murabito believes the risk factor may be explained by a combination of genetics and shared childhood eating and exercise habits.

These three sisters are heart-healthy, but their brother died of a heart attack.

"We don't really have dinner-table discussions about our heath," said one sister.

But Dr. Murabito suggests that siblings should share information about their heart health with each other and their doctors.