Inheritance: How Our Genes Change Our Lives and Our Lives Change Our Genes

Conventional wisdom dictates that our genetic destiny is fixed at conception. But Inheritance shows us that the human genome is far more fluid, fascinating and relevant than your 9^th grade biology teacher led you to believe. Moalem employs his profoundly wide-ranging and interdisciplinary approach to science and medicine to explain how art, history, superheroes, sex workers and sports stars can all help us understand our genes in a radically new way, in our present lives and even in our children's future.

Just a few things you'll learn in Inheritance:

· You might have recovered from the psychological trauma caused by childhood bullies...but your genes can remain scarred for life.

· The difference between being slim and obese might have less to do with what you eat than with the micro-organisms in your gut, or even the genes you inherited.

· Insurance companies can use your genetic data to predict your and your children's risk of disability--which can then impact the coverage decisions they make for your entire family.

· For most people, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but for people with certain genes, it's a ticket to the coroner's office.

· One of the most important examinations that can be performed by a geneticist doesn't actually involve looking at your genes.

· Some people can smoke for their entire lives and never get cancer--and Big Tobacco wants nothing more than a peek at their genome.

· For people with a specific set of genes, taking common painkillers is like taking repeated hits of morphine.

In this gene journey based on immaculate scientific research by one of the world's leading authoritative voices on human genetics and health, we chart a riveting course that's destined to shatter our presuppositions about the fundamental nature of our genes. Moalem deftly brings readers to the bedside of some of his most complex and unique genetic patients to masterfully demonstrate what uncommon genetic conditions can teach us about our universal health and wellbeing.

Turning the nature/nurture debate completely on its head, Inheritance will dazzle readers as they learn how to apply this compendium of groundbreaking genetic research in their daily lives and take control of their destiny in a manner their parents could only have dreamed of.