Are allergies hereditary?

Having a family history of allergies does make it much more likely that you yourself will also be prone to them. The genes associated with hay fever are located on chromosomes five and 11, and as you get a copy each of all of your parent’s chromosomes, if they have genes predisposing them to hay fever, chances are you will have them as well. Although there are no particular genes associated with food and drug allergies, these too are much more likely to occur in families where there is a history of allergic attacks.

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