Dad’s Hidden Influence

A father's legacy to a child's health may start before conception and last generations

Pregnant women know the drill. Don’t drink. Don’t smoke. Don’t eat too much fish. Take vitamins. Mothers have long shouldered the responsibility, and the blame, for their children’s health. Fathers don’t usually face the same scrutiny.

OLDER AGE, HIGHER RISK. As men age, they stand a greater chance of fathering children who will develop schizophrenia by age 34.