Health complaints change over the decades. What worries us at 25 is very different from our concerns at 40. We asked the HuffPost Lifestyle Facebook community to tell us what they worried about most, and then conferred with experts.



Whether you’re barely 20 years old or pushing 65, health stewardship is a part of being an adult. Everyday decisions, repeated over a lifetime, can mean the difference between a long and active life and one confined to a couch or hospital bed.

While many people assume you can’t do anything about your genetic lot in life, that’s not true. Armed with better behavior and educated, preventative measures based on family history, you can be your most healthful self.
While there’s no precise figure for the impact that genetics plays on health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that from a population-wide perspective, less than 12 percent of health outcomes are genetic. The rest is a mixture of environment, behavior and access to quality health services.
Genetic knowledge is power
While you can’t change your genes, you can arm yourself with the specific knowledge that might help you. Use your next family gathering as a chance to learn more about your genetic risks — even if your family is generally healthy.

“It’s never too early to start with a good family health history,” said Dr. Charis Eng, a cancer geneticist at the Cleveland Clinic. Her advice? Touch base with whomever has the most comprehensive knowledge of your extended family’s health — it’s not necessarily your parents — then draw up a family health blueprint.

“Certainly with parents or first-degree relatives, parents, siblings, kids, you can start building: Have you ever been ill? How old were you when you were diagnosed?” Eng said.

Read More: http://www.robminds.com/healthy-living/what-you-should-know-about-your-health-at-every-age/?preview=true&preview_id=1577&preview_nonce=f6fcacab9e