Increasingly younger people are developing chronic, progressive and consumptive diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and even Alzheimer’s disease. The numbers of people diagnosed is growing each year, and the health care system has to adapt to the gargantuan demand of fast, effective treatments. Some people are aware of their chances to develop certain diseases after consulting their family history, but most are unpleasantly taken by surprise.

A new study was launched today, Thursday October 9th. It will be extended on a time-period of 20 years and it focuses on predicting what diseases people might develop along their lives. People can access their individual study report about the genetic risks they face. The companies offering these reports are, among others, Navigenics Inc., 23andMe Inc. and decode Genetics Inc. The remaining question is how will this information affect or change people’s lives. They might change their lifestyle to beat the odds, they might develop depression due to their awareness of being genetically prone to developing a disease, they may appeal to health care resources they don’t need or they might not change their state of mind or way of living in any way.

The results of the individual DNA studies might also have a negative effect on the population. In other words, if one finds out they have low genetic disease risk, they could consider that they might as well throw caution to the wind and alter their lifestyle and eating habits for the worst. It must be clear that genetics do influence the risk of developing cancer or diabetes, but a careless lifestyle might heighten that risk or even open the door for other diseases, not mentioned in the individual report, such as heart failure or heart attacks.

For the next 20 years, the 10,000 case-control studies will have to report back to the conducting company, filling them in about their physical and psychological reactions to the individualized genetic information they receive.