Can your children inherit your lifestyle in their genes?

Each one of us comes into the world with 20,000 to 25,000 genes,a unique genetic profile,passed down from our parents.But genes don't stay static throughout life,as cell grow and divide,errors(mutations)  are produced in DNA that constitute genetic code. However ,errors that slip through the body's defence system may result in disease.
Mutations can be inherited from a parent to a child("hereditary") OR they can happen during a person's lifetime ("Acquired").
New research suggests that lifestyle choices of parents can affect the health of their offsprings as it causes external modifications to their DNA which alters expression of their genes, this process is called as epigenetics.
Modifiable factors that can affect the expression of our genes include diet,physical activity,tobacco,smoking,alcohol and psychological stress.
For example:- From studies it is proved that

• Paternal alcoholism has been associated with smaller birth weights in babies and hyperactivity in children.
• The longer the father smoked,the higher the risk of his child having asthma.Intrestingly,the same link was not found in children whose mother smoked before they concieved.
• A poor diet ,for example, increases the risk of diseases-not only our own,but also that of our children.
• Many diseases ,such as Cystic Fibrosis and PCOD/PCOS( irregular or missed periods) in girls are widely known to be inherited by next generation.

Diseases whose risk you can modify with the right lifestyle choices include Alzheimer,cancer,cardiovascular diseases,diabetes and obesity.
We know today that good lifestyle choices can also make good things happen to our genes.
So we need a new focus on adolescent health and behaviour not only to help our young people but so that when they become parents they pass on their healthier  epigenetic process to next generation.