It Didn't Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle

the DNA responsible for transmitting physical traits, such as the color of our hair, eyes, and skin—surprisingly makes up less than 2 percent of our total DNA.14 The other 98 percent consists of what is called noncoding DNA (ncDNA), and is responsible for many of the emotional, behavioral, and personality traits we inherit.

that even if humans receive supportive parenting as infants, we are still the recipients of the stress our parents experienced before we were conceived.

DNA methylation, a process that blocks proteins from attaching to a gene, suppressing its expression