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11 Inherited Traits from Mom and Dad: Intelligence, Memory and More

Bad memory? Poor sleep habits? These inherited traits may come from your parents. But who's to blame? Here's what the science says.

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All about genetic inheritance

Do you have your mom’s button nose? Did your dad pass on the curse of sneezing in bright sunlight? And where did your baby’s red, curly hair come from when there hasn’t been a redhead in your family for generations? These questions may sound simple, but the answers get complicated fast. Why? Because the science behind inherited traits is complicated. Your hairline, rare hair color, freckles, dimples and even intelligence can be passed down genetically, but it’s complex.

“There are 20,000 genes in your body, and half come from your mom and the other half come from your dad,” says Heather Hampel, a genetic counselor at City of Hope Cancer Center in Duarte, California. “Each gene codes for one protein or substance, and this mix is the recipe for you—from hair color and eye color to height and predisposition to certain diseases.”

Of course, genes aren’t destiny, and only a small fraction of genes are completely penetrant, which means that if you inherit this gene, it will 100% express itself, says Hampel. But which characteristics are influenced more by your mother or father? We spoke with Hampel and Taylor Sabato, a licensed genetic counselor in Ohio, to break down the science.

What are inherited traits?

There are many ways you can inherit traits from your parents, says Sabato. First is through a dominant gene—if you inherit a dominant gene, you will develop that trait. Take eye color, for example. If either of your parents has brown eyes, you likely will have brown eyes, as this is a dominant trait. Second is through a recessive gene—both parents have to have the recessive gene for you to have that trait. For instance, if you have blue eyes, then both of your parents must carry a gene for blue eyes, even if their eye color isn’t blue.

“For dominant inheritance, a single gene variant from your mom or dad may influence whether you will get that trait,” Sabato explains. “With a recessive trait, you need to inherit a gene variant from your mom and your dad.”

There are more complex gene inheritance patterns that require multiple gene variants from mom or dad for you to develop a trait or condition, but the most common inheritance pattern is X-linked inheritance. These are conditions influenced by gene variants on the X chromosome. “It is the variants/variation within the coding sequence of the genes that causes the differences among us, including benign things like hair color and/or medical conditions, such as sickle cell anemia or cystic fibrosis,” says Sabato. Ahead, we’re explaining which of those inherited traits you’re getting from mom, and which come from dad.

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About the experts

  • Heather Hampel, MS, CGC, is an internationally recognized cancer genetic counselor and researcher at City of Hope Cancer Center in Duarte, California.
  • Taylor Sabato, MPH, MMSc, LGC, is a licensed genetic counselor and an assistant professor at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. She has a master of medical science degree and a master of public health degree.

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Intelligence

Inherited from: Mom

Is intelligence inherited? Partially. And here’s the good news for mom: Research has revealed that children are twice as likely to get their intelligence from their mothers. Common sense might suggest that children inherit intelligence from both parents. However, several studies have found that certain genes operate differently. The genes that determine intelligence are located in chromosome X. And because women carry two X chromosomes and men carry only one, the conclusion is that women are twice as likely to transmit inherited traits related to intelligence.

The evidence goes back decades. One longitudinal analysis conducted by the Medical Research Council Social and Public Health Sciences Unit in Glasgow, Scotland, interviewed 12,686 people ranging in age from 14 to 22 annually between 1994 and 2004. Their results? After accounting for their IQ, race, education and socio-economic status, researchers found that the best predictor for intelligence was, once again, the mother’s IQ. In fact, the young people’s IQ varied only an average of 15 points from that of their mother’s.

Keep in mind that intelligence is formed by a lot more than genetics though. Scientists estimate that only about 40% of intelligence is hereditary, according to work in the International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, with the other 60% impacted by environmental factors and nongenetic influence.

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Your risk for certain cancers

Inherited from: Mom and dad

Cancer susceptibility genes are dominant genes, Hampel says. “If you have one mistake in one gene on one side of your family, you have a 50% increased chance of inheriting that cancer gene, and a 50% chance that you didn’t and have no increased risk for that cancer.”

One of the most common is Lynch syndrome, which involves a mutation in the MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, PMS2 or EPCAM genes. It may mean an elevated risk for colorectal cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer and other related cancers. The BRCA genes can increase risk for breast and ovarian cancer as well.

But here’s the kicker: You don’t need to have the organ to have the gene, says Hampel. In fact, you can get the ovarian cancer gene from your dad, as well as the breast cancer gene. And men who have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation have a higher risk of developing prostate and other cancers as well.

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Your sleeping patterns

Inherited from: Mom

Tossing and turning all night? Yawning all the time? Chances are that your mom has the same or similar sleeping issues. Research in the November 2023 issue of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry showed a genetic predisposition to the development of insomnia in kids was associated with insomnia-like symptoms reported by their moms.

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Your high cholesterol

Inherited from: Mom and dad

You eat a low-fat diet and exercise regularly, yet your cholesterol is still sky high. What gives? Certain genes can also be passed down from both parents, including one that causes high cholesterol, Hampel says.

Familial hypercholesterolemia affects about 1 in 250 people and increases the likelihood of developing heart disease at a young age. It’s passed down by mistakes in the LDLR, APOB and PCSK9 genes, which affect how your body regulates and removes cholesterol from your blood, says Hampel. Genetic testing is available to check for mutations in these genes. And keep in mind that if you have inherited high cholesterol, you’ll want to talk to your doctor about active ways to protect your heart.

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Your ability to focus

Inherited from: Mom

Children whose mothers had lower-than-normal brain chemical serotonin levels were 1.5 to 2.5 times more likely to develop attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) later in life than children whose mothers had normal serotonin levels, according to a study published in JAMA Psychiatry.

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Your vision problems

Inherited from: Mom and dad

There are a handful of vision-limiting conditions that can be passed down from your parents, including Stargardt disease, Usher syndrome and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Currently, there is no way to reverse these risks if you inherit gene variants that are associated with the diseases. However, talking to an ophthalmologist or genetic counselor may be beneficial if these conditions are present in your family history or if you have personally been diagnosed with any of these vision conditions, says Sabato.

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Your ability to lose or gain weight

Inherited from: Mom and dad

There are two types of fat in your body: brown fat, which increases your metabolism and helps you maintain a healthy weight, and white fat, which is “bad” fat that can cause obesity and disease. Everyone has some of each type, but how much brown fat you have—and therefore how high your metabolism is—may be inherited from your mom, according to a study published in Nature.

However, while your mom may be helping you out with the brown fat, you can blame your dad for your white fat. The same Nature study found that how much fat you store, particularly around your organs, may be partly determined by genes passed down from your father, the researchers say.

It’s not that simple though, says Sabato. There isn’t one gene that can affect the ability to lose weight. “There are a lot of environmental factors and genetic factors that we haven’t nailed down yet that play a role in your ability to gain or lose weight,” she says. “There are medical conditions, such as diabetes or polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), that may make it harder to lose weight. From a genetics perspective, research suggests that there are many gene variants that may increase risk for these conditions.”

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If you hit puberty early

Inherited from: Dad

Puberty, and all the fun milestones that come along with it, like acne, cracking voices or getting your period, is a rite of passage—and apparently, one of those inherited traits, sort of. Both parents’ genetics play a part in when exactly you start the big change, but if you started puberty early—before age 8 in girls and 9 in boys—that may be due to a gene you inherit from your father, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Specifically, they identified that a genetic mutation leads to a type of premature puberty, meaning that if you have it, you’ll have to deal with all that stuff before any of your friends.

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Your memory

Inherited from: Mom

It’s been known for some time that a family history of Alzheimer’s disease significantly increases the risk for developing the illness, but a new study, published in Biological Psychiatry, found that the genetic risk primarily comes from your mother. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia later in life, affecting nearly 6 million people in America alone, so it’s important to know what factors increase your risk—including your mother’s medical history—so you can start taking steps to protect your brain health now, the researchers noted.

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Your fertility

Inherited from: Dad

A woman’s fertility may be impacted by a gene she inherited from her father, according to a study published in Science. In a normal egg cell, a part of the cell called the centrioles is eliminated as part of the natural development process. However, if the centrioles aren’t eliminated—often due to a genetic dysfunction, passed on by her dad—then the woman can be sterile, researchers explained.

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Your diminishing hairline

Inherited from: Mom … maybe

You may have heard that how and when a man loses his hair is due to an inherited trait from his mom’s side. However, a study published in PLoS Genetics, which analyzed more than 55,000 men, suggests it may be a myth. Researchers found 287 independent genetic signals that were linked to male-pattern hair loss, and while 40 were found on the X chromosome, meaning they were inherited on the maternal side, the rest were scattered throughout DNA inherited from both patterns. Interestingly, some genes associated with hair loss also seem to be associated with an increased risk for heart disease in men.

Why trust us

At Reader’s Digest, we’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. For this piece, Denise Mann tapped her many years of experience writing about consumer health and ensured that all information was accurate and offered the best possible advice to readers. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.

Sources:

  • Heather Hampel, MS, CGC, genetic counselor; interview, January 2024
  • Taylor Sabato, MPH, MMSc, LGC, genetic counselor and assistant professor at the Ohio State University; interview, January 2024
  • Science Direct: “Heritability Estimate”
  • Med Page Today: “Children Inherit Mom’s IQ”
  • Nature: “Genetic Testing for Familial Hypercholesterolemia”
  • Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry: “Are some children genetically predisposed to poor sleep? A polygenic risk study in the general population”
  • Nature: “LincRNA H19 protects from dietary obesity by constraining expression of monoallelic genes in brown fat”
  • JAMA Psychiatry: “Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Offspring of Mothers With Impaired Serotonin Production”
  • The New England Journal of Medicine: “Central Precocious Puberty Caused by Mutations in the Imprinted Gene MKRN3”
  • Biological Psychiatry: “Oxidative Stress and Amyloid-Beta Pathology in Normal Individuals with A Maternal History of Alzheimer’s”
  • Science: “A mechanism for the elimination of the female gamete centrosome in Drosophila melanogaster”
  • PLoS Genetics: “Genetic prediction of male pattern baldness”

Denise Mann, MS
Denise is an award-winning health-science writer whose articles regularly appear in Reader's Digest, WebMD, healthday.com and cnn.com. Before freelancing, she worked for the Medical Tribune News Service for three years, and her articles were picked up by the Detroit Free Press, Chicago Sun-Times, Dallas Morning News and Los Angeles Daily News. She was also part of a writing team that won a 2008 Sigma Delta Chi award for a WebMD series on autism.