"Att skylla på generna" verkar faktiskt hjälpa

The study is among the first to show the value of genetic counselling for psychiatric illnesses, and researchers say that the service should be made more available to people suffering from mental illness. Genetic counselling helps patients understand the cause of their illness, the genetic component and how they can protect their mental health going forward.

"Traditionally genetic counselling is applied to conditions that are caused entirely by genes like Huntington's disease," said Jehannine Austin, a Canada Research Chair in Translational Psychiatric genomics and associate professor at UBC. "Psychiatric disorders arise because of a combination of genes and experience and our study shows that genetic counselling is just as valuable for these patients."