# Can one's outward appearance predict future disease? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 25, 2023, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680 "2023-09-25T16:21:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/1 "2023-09-25T16:21:49Z")
Say for example that I look just like my father, does that mean that I am any more or less likely to develop genetic conditions that he had as opposed to my mother? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/2 "2023-09-25T16:47:56Z")
I’m not sure if _genetic_ diseases “develop” in the traditional sense of the word. If you mean any disease, for example there is a correlation between melanoma and skin tone. Pale skin is not a disease although it is a risk factor for melanoma. But correlation is not causation, and a risk factor is distinct from the cause of a disease. In the case of melanoma the cause is primarily ultraviolet light. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/3 "2023-09-25T17:01:18Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > I’m not sure if _genetic_ diseases “develop” in the traditional sense of the word. If you mean any disease, for example there is a correlation between melanoma and skin tone. Pale skin is not a disease although it is a risk factor for melanoma. But correlation is not causation, and a risk factor is distinct from the cause of a disease. In the case of melanoma the cause is primarily ultraviolet light. You seem to be trying to explain the principle that correlation is not causation by citing an example of causation. Melanin is protective against UV mutagenesis. That is direct causation. Causation does not require that the presence or absence of melanin is in itself a symptom of disease. But when OP used the words “genetic conditions”, perhaps the point you’re making here is more to distinguish between diseases like Huntington’s, and genetic risk factors? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/4 "2023-09-25T17:06:13Z")
> [@Nars\_Glinley](#): > > Say for example that I look just like my father, does that mean that I am any more or less likely to develop genetic conditions that he had as opposed to my mother? There will be a correlation for some diseases. It would require that the innate risk factors for a given disease are either the same genes that determine outward appearance, or that they are different genes but linked (linked in the technical sense that they are physically close on the chromosome, and therefore more likely to be inherited together). ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/5 "2023-09-25T17:13:49Z")
I’ve heard that creases in ear lobes, also known as ‘Frank’s sign’ is thought to be a marker for greater risk of coronary artery disease. I’ve noticed the creases in many people over the years since I heard this, and thought “uh oh, hope they get regular heart checkups”. > **[Ear lobe crease (Frank's sign): Can it predict heart attacks?](https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/ear-crease-heart-attack)** > > Some studies associate a diagonal ear lobe crease (DELC), also known as Frank's sign, with coronary artery disease. Copper-colored rings in the iris of one’s eyes is often a sign of Wilson’s Disease (learned that one from House, M.D.): > **[Kayser-Fleischer Rings: Symptoms & Treatment](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/24179-kayser-fleischer-rings)** > > Kayser-Fleischer rings are dark rings that surround the irises of your eyes. The rings are related to Wilson’s disease. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/6 "2023-09-25T17:17:57Z")
People with [Marfan syndrome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marfan_syndrome#Genetics) “tend to be tall and thin, with long arms, legs, fingers, and toes.” ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/7 "2023-09-25T18:01:37Z")
Maybe a better question would be will one have a closer health profile as they age to the parent they most resemble, especially if they very closely resemble one of the parents? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/8 "2023-09-25T18:05:01Z")
> [@solost](#): > > I’ve heard that creases in ear lobes, also known as ‘Frank’s sign’ is thought to be a marker for greater risk of coronary artery disease. Heard of this, and I have creases. Doctor says it’s competing with a lot of less visible symptoms for problems other than my heart. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/9 "2023-09-25T18:06:22Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Maybe a better question would be will one have a closer health profile as they age to the parent they most resemble, especially if they very closely resemble one of the parents?. This is more or less what I was getting at but I was in a hurry and couldn’t think of a good way to phrase it. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/10 "2023-09-25T18:14:33Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Maybe a better question would be will one have a closer health profile as they age to the parent they most resemble, especially if they very closely resemble one of the parents? I think the correlation of overall “health profile” must surely be at least weakly positive, since susceptibility to at least _some_ diseases will be correlated with physical appearance. But if you want to quantify this in any useful way I think it would be better to look at specific diseases that you’re concerned with. In some cases external physical appearance will be irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/11 "2023-09-25T18:22:44Z")
Are you asking that, if genetics cause you to look like a particular parent, you are also more likely to be genetically subject to the same diseases that parent is/was subject to? ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/12 "2023-09-25T18:37:09Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > People with [Marfan syndrome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marfan_syndrome#Genetics) “tend to be tall and thin, with long arms, legs, fingers, and toes.” [President Lincoln has long been speculated to have had Marfan Syndrome, or at least a Marfanoid genetic mutation.](https://www.clinicalcorrelations.org/2013/04/19/did-abraham-lincoln-have-marfan-syndrome/) ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/13 "2023-09-25T18:41:33Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Are you asking that, if genetics cause you to look like a particular parent, you are also more likely to be genetically subject to the same diseases that parent is/was subject to?. Yes. 5 characters ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/14 "2023-09-25T18:51:26Z")
> [@Nars\_Glinley](#): > > Yes. 5 characters Yes… ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2023, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/15 "2023-09-25T18:52:48Z")
never mind ---
**Author:** ![Loggins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Loggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loggins)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2023, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/16 "2023-09-26T11:56:14Z")
How can creases in the earlobe have anything to do with other parts of the body? Im sure there are some explanation ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2023, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ones-outward-appearance-predict-future-disease/990680/17 "2023-09-26T13:01:43Z")
The creases don’t cause it. They are allegedly a side symptom that indicates something else.