Family Members who Stutter.

[DKoz]

Hey guys,

My speech language pathologist told me that stuttering is genetic. Which is understandable in my case because I have a grandfather and cousin who also stutter.

Anyone else in you family stutter?

[Bill Hargis]

None of my 6 children stutter

[DKoz]

None of my 6 children stutter

I see. Do you know if any of your ancestors stuttered?

[Standingtall]

I have a uncle that use to stutter and i believe his two boys due stutter. I am the only from my siblings to stutter. One brother and one sister outgrew theirs. I had a couple of nieces and one nephew that started, but it ended just as quickly. My twin daughters stutter, but they are getting better as their speech develop.

[JDRow]

I don't know anybody else in my family who stutters. My parents and aunts and uncles don't, and I'm one of six kids, and none of my brothers or sisters stutters, and none of their kids do.

It's possible that there have been other people in my family who do but I don't know them.

[EddieO]

My uncle stutters. Supposedly my dad did when he was kid but I can't ask him anymore. Maybe I will ask his siblings if I remember.

[Bud]

All but one of my mother's brothers stuttered. She and her sister did not. Only two of those uncles had a child who stuttered. I never knew my grandparents and nobody ever said if one of them stuttered. All the stutterers that I know of in our family were males.

[Nicholas]

My brother and I stutter, while my father did until high school. I was led to believe my family had a history of it on both sides.

[mo885]

My grandfather and a cousin in my family used to stutter. I just found out this weekend all this time no one told me.

[emily445455]

My sister and I inherited our stutters from our mother, and her from her father (he was carrying the recessive gene, his brother stuttered).

I hope my kids dont....:(

[tb1223]

My dad cls he used to, but I think it was a really minor thing and he's just trying to make me feel better. I have however heard stories of a second or third cousin on my dad's side of the family who had a severe stutter until he was about 30, when he suddenly became fluent. Besides that it's just me, as far as I know.

[DKoz]

My dad cls he used to, but I think it was a really minor thing and he's just trying to make me feel better. I have however heard stories of a second or third cousin on my dad's side of the family who had a severe stutter until he was about 30, when he suddenly became fluent. Besides that it's just me, as far as I know.

Yeah one of my sisters used to stutter. But within 2 years or so, she grew out of it. Wierd.

[emily445455]

Sometimes stutters can be learned and the child grows out of them. My friend used to stutter when he was a child because his dad talked way too fast...his dad started to talk more slowly, and he hasn't stuttered since. :) Sure would be nice huh? lol

[MPG4915]

DKoz,

There are many types, onsets, theories, etc involved with stuttering. As stutterers, we also often have our own theories, which may or may not have any scientific foundations.

I'm a molecular biologist. A colleague of mine, Dr. Dennis Drayna has explored some research involving stuttering and inheritance. His work is interesting and suggests that in many cases, there is a genetic predispositon to stuttering. Therefore, in some cases stuttering is genetic. But with all things genetic, the answers don't end with the preliminary study. There is still much work to be done. Is stuttering the result of a single or multiple genes? What triggers the gene(s) to express in some people and not others? Can the trait be suppressed? and so on...

However, this research does give me hope that scientists are looking at the causes and potential real treatments of stuttering. It is no longer thought of as a simple nervous habit. It is recognized as an actual clinical condition.

For my own story, I've always believed that it was genetic. My paternal grandfather, 4 paternal uncles, 5 paternal cousins, and I all stutter. So, Drayna's work was of particular interest to me. Now, I just hope the work continues so that we may better understand the role of genetics in the predisposition for this condition.

Currently, there is medical reason to be tested for stuttering genes. It won't change your treatment options. However, research laboratories like the NIH and others are sometimes looking for DNA donors to further their research into this project. If you were interetsed in participating in any study like this, I'd suggest that you look into the NIH website and/or other legitimate academic or public research institutions around the world. Afterall, the discoveries won't be found if the scientists don't look for them.

[DKoz]

DKoz,

There are many types, onsets, theories, etc involved with stuttering. As stutterers, we also often have our own theories, which may or may not have any scientific foundations.

I'm a molecular biologist. A colleague of mine, Dr. Dennis Drayna has explored some research involving stuttering and inheritance. His work is interesting and suggests that in many cases, there is a genetic predispositon to stuttering. Therefore, in some cases stuttering is genetic. But with all things genetic, the answers don't end with the preliminary study. There is still much work to be done. Is stuttering the result of a single or multiple genes? What triggers the gene(s) to express in some people and not others? Can the trait be suppressed? and so on...

However, this research does give me hope that scientists are looking at the causes and potential real treatments of stuttering. It is no longer thought of as a simple nervous habit. It is recognized as an actual clinical condition.

For my own story, I've always believed that it was genetic. My paternal grandfather, 4 paternal uncles, 5 paternal cousins, and I all stutter. So, Drayna's work was of particular interest to me. Now, I just hope the work continues so that we may better understand the role of genetics in the predisposition for this condition.

Currently, there is medical reason to be tested for stuttering genes. It won't change your treatment options. However, research laboratories like the NIH and others are sometimes looking for DNA donors to further their research into this project. If you were interetsed in participating in any study like this, I'd suggest that you look into the NIH website and/or other legitimate academic or public research institutions around the world. Afterall, the discoveries won't be found if the scientists don't look for them.


Sounds interesting, thanks. I'm going to see what's available in Toronto. My last speech language pathologist worked for a doctor (University of Toronto) who has a doctorate in speech pathology I guess and maybe they can send some info on genetics in stuttering.