Is Asthma Genetic? Here’s How Your Genes and the Environment Affect Your Risk

Many people have questions about why they develop asthma. Is asthma genetic? That is, do you get it from your mother or father — or both? Are there things in the environment that make developing asthma more likely? Can you do genetic testing to see if you have asthma? All the answers might surprise you.

Researchers have found both genes and the environment play a part in whether someone develops asthma. Read more to learn about the genetics of asthma and what triggers in the environment may lead to this condition.  

Is asthma genetic?

Yes, but the full answer is complicated. 

Most people think of “genetic” and “hereditary” as being the same thing, but they aren’t.

Genetic conditions are caused by changes in someone’s genes. Some genetic conditions can pass from one generation to another, which makes them hereditary. Other genetic conditions don’t pass from parents to children, so they’re not hereditary.  

Asthma is genetic, but it’s not the result of a single gene change. A large genetic study found that many different genes have links to the disease. But having these genes doesn’t guarantee that someone will develop asthma. Exposure to environmental factors also play a role in whether someone with asthma genes develops the condition.

This means that if you and/or your partner or donor have asthma, eczema, or allergies — your children will have a higher risk of getting one of these conditions. But that doesn’t mean your child will definitely develop asthma. 

Is there an asthma gene?

No, there’s no single gene change that causes asthma. 

Researchers use genome-wide association studies to find out whether genes play a role in medical conditions. Experts look at gene samples from a large, diverse group of people to see if there are differences in the genes of people who have a certain condition, like asthma, and those who don’t.  

Since 2007, researchers have performed many genome-wide association studies. By pooling together the results of these large studies, experts are able to tell whether gene differences actually lead to asthma or if the relationship is only due to chance. 

These studies have revealed some important facts about the genetics of asthma:

• Several genes play a role in asthma. And there are likely more undiscovered genetic causes. In a 2016 study, researchers looked at the genes of Black children with asthma. They found a new asthma-related gene that previous studies hadn’t identified. 

• The genes involved in childhood asthma and adult-onset asthma are different. 

• Asthma genes may be linked to the risk of developing other conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and hay fever (allergic rhinitis). 

So while asthma may be genetic, there are a lot of different genes involved. And other factors (besides genetics) play a role in whether someone develops asthma.

What environmental factors can affect your risk for asthma?

We know now that it takes more than just genes to develop asthma. Being exposed to certain things in the environment likely triggers asthma in people who already have genes linked to asthma. 

Smoke exposure is the best-studied environmental risk factor for developing asthma. Research shows children are more likely to develop asthma if they’re exposed to secondhand smoke during pregnancy and childhood. 

But other things in the environment can also increase someone’s risk of developing asthma. These include:

• Mold 

• Pollen

• Cat dander

• Dust mites 

• Air pollution

• Viral respiratory infections

• Mice and rodents

• Cockroaches and pests

• Gases from malfunctioning gas ranges, furnaces, or wood-burning stoves 

Researchers believe that exposure to these things as a fetus or infant may increase someone’s risk for developing asthma, especially if they have a hereditary risk for asthma. 

What aspects of asthma might be genetic?

Although genes alone don’t determine whether a person will develop asthma, studies suggest that genetics can play a part in the following:

• Susceptibility (how likely you’re to get it)

• Severity (how bad your symptoms are)

• Response to medications (how well medications help your symptoms)

Is genetic testing for asthma available?

There are genetic tests that can find genes that are linked to asthma. A healthcare professional can order genetic testing. There are also companies that offer direct-to-consumer testing. 

But experts don’t recommend these tests. These tests can tell you if you have genes linked to asthma. But they can’t tell you what that means for your health and future. Asthma isn’t purely genetic — the environment plays a role, too. Many genes play a role in whether someone develops asthma, and it’s not clear how these genes work together. That means current genetic testing can’t predict a person’s risk for developing asthma. 

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Written by:

Brian Clista, MD

Dr. Clista is a board-certified pediatrician who works in private practice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He previously served as a National Health Service Corporation Scholar in the inner city of Pittsburgh for 11 years.

Edited by:

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH, is a medical editor at GoodRx. She is a licensed, board-certified pediatrician with more than a decade of experience in academic medicine.

Reviewed by:

Christine Giordano, MD

Christine Giordano, MD, is board-certified in general internal medicine. She received her medical degree from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and completed residency at Thomas Jefferson University.

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