ST. THOMAS - Officials with the V.I. Health and Human Services departments are encouraging Virgin Islanders to learn about their family health histories during the Thanksgiving holiday as part of a national initiative.

U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona has declared Thanksgiving Day to be National Family History Day as part of a nationwide campaign to encourage American families to learn more about their health histories, according to information from the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

Audria Thomas, the V.I. Health Department's district health officer for St. Thomas-St. John, said that because tendencies toward particular diseases - such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease - can be inherited, obtaining a complete family health history arms patients and doctors with a valuable tool.

"Tracing the illnesses suffered by your parents, grandparents and other blood relatives can help your doctor predict the diseases to which you may be at risk and take action to keep you and your family healthy," Health Commissioner Darlene Carty said in a written statement the department released last week.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the territory, followed by cancer. Knowing what diseases you may be genetically predisposed to can help you reduce the risk of actually developing the disease by changing lifestyle factors - such as diet, exercise and smoking - that increase your risk, Thomas said.

Likewise, armed with the knowledge that a patient is more likely to develop a disease, doctors can start early screening for it, Thomas said.

The Thanksgiving holiday provides a time when families are together and can take a few minutes to discuss their health histories, she said.

According to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, a recent survey found that 96 percent of Americans believe that knowing their family history is important, but only one-third of Americans ever have tried to gather and write down the information.

The Surgeon General's Office has developed a computerized tool to create a portrait of family health. "My Family Health Portrait" is available online at https://familyhistory.hhs.gov.

According to the Health Department's statement, paper forms for family health histories are available at Community Health Clinics on all three islands, at Head Start centers and at the Office of Preschool Services in the Human Services Department at Knud Hansen Complex. A form is also available on page 21 of The Daily News today.

Thomas said that once it is completed, the information should be distributed among family members and to the family doctor.

- Contact Joy Blackburn at 774-8772 ext. 303 or e-mail blackburn@dailynews.vi.