6 Things Parents Passed On To Their Children

Illustration of things that parents pass down to their children (Unsplash/Natan Dumlao)

YOGYAKARTA – Genetically, some aspects of parents are passed down to their children. Some things that are not visible, or besides physically, are also decreasing. What might you pass on to your baby? The following is a list based on scientific studies.

1. Ability to lose weight

In the body, there are two types of fat, namely good brown fat and bad white fat. Brown fat contributes to increase metabolism and helps maintain weight. While white fat can cause obesity and if you have too much can cause a number of diseases.

Genetically, this type of fat is passed down from the mother. According to research published in Nature Communications, reported by Reader's Digest, Thursday, May 19, how much brown fat is inherited from the mother.

2. It's easy to gain weight

It's not just the ability to lose weight in relation to brown fat that's passed down from the mother. But also the level of fat that is owned, especially around the organs, is determined by the genes passed down from the father. It should be noted that genetics is not destiny in terms of weight. Because lifestyle choices also play a big role in weight.

Illustration of things that parents pass down to their children (Unsplash/Natan Dumlao)

3. Ability to focus

According to a study published in JAMA Psychiatry, the genes that are passed from mother to child that affect serotonin production appear to also affect the ability to focus. If a mother has lower serotonin levels, it is more likely to have a child who develops attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

4. How quickly signs of aging appear

If you're curious about your father's or mother's inheritance, licensed genetic counselor and director of the Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Dawn Allain says that genetic inheritance is complicated. There are three ways of inheriting traits from parents. First, through dominant genes, genetic inheritance develops. If one of the parents has brown eyes, the child is more likely to have brown eyes because they are dominant.

Second, through a recessive gene. For example, if neither parent has blue eyes and the child has blue eyes, then both parents must carry the blue eye gene. Third, there are X-chromosome-related traits that are only passed down through the mother.

Well, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) damage that affects the appearance of signs of aging can be inherited from the mother. According to one study, the more mtDNA with mutations inherited from the mother, the more quickly gray hair and wrinkles appear.

5. Mood

Not only providing the best food menu, but mothers also reduce the emotional state of their children. There is a structure in a part of the brain known as the corticolimbic system, which controls emotion regulation and plays a role in mood disorders, such as depression. The corticolimbic system is more likely to be passed from mother to daughter than to son.

The study, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, found that daughters at least partially inherit their mothers' moods.

6. Memory

If the family has a history of Alzheimer's, it significantly increases the risk for their offspring. But a new study published in Biological Psychiatry finds that genetic risk primarily comes from the mother. Steps need to be taken to protect brain health, such as by exercising memory regularly and minimizing triggers for memory loss.