https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/7126452/lisa-marie-presely-health-update-elvis-family-tree-death/FredAistair wrote: ↑Sat Jan 14, 2023 10:26 pmNo, genetics suggest a likely heart condition, the rest is just noise.lanadelslay wrote: ↑Sat Jan 14, 2023 9:19 pmBut Gladys was worried and died after that from substance abuse (alcohol). Elvis worked himself to death, was a huge superstar, too much responsibility, lost his mother who was his everything, then Vernon lost his son which seemed to have made his health deteriorate. Then Lisa Marie loses her dad which made her use substance abuse then her son and years later her health deteriorates. To me it's more a history of mental health issues & grief/tragedy than anythingBrianTCB wrote: ↑Sat Jan 14, 2023 1:31 amGladys' parents both died very young, and her father died very unexpectedly and suddenly, so it could be something hereditary from the mother's side.jurasic1968 wrote: ↑Sat Jan 14, 2023 1:29 amWell, Jesse Presley, Vernon's father died at 77 years old and Minnie Mae, Elvis's grandma died at 90 years old. Elvis' uncle Vester died at 83 years old. Billy Smith is alive at 80 years old. So I don't think it was an underlying hereditary genetic heart condition or defect that has gone undiagnosed throughout the family.
Gladys' father died early - very unexpectedly and suddenly - 58
Gladys' mother died early from sickness - 59
Gladys died early - 46
Elvis died early - 42
Vernon died early - 63
Lisa Marie died early - 54
Some sudden cardiac event causing death has happened to just about everybody in that mother's lineage: Gladys.
I haven't read the book, but the article appears to be sound. Yes, I realize it's the Sun, but it has some interesting observations:
The most obvious: Doll Smith and Bob Smith were first cousins, which is a no-no for a reason.
Both Elvis and Gladys suffered the same 4-year degenerative health decline leading up to their deaths.
Gladys' doctor has long been quoted as saying that while it looked like it was hepatitis brought on by her alcoholism, he could not work out what was wrong with her.
The author believes that "Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, an inherited and rarely diagnosed disorder that can cause lung and liver disease" was also a cause of Elvis' death, something that was discovered after he died.
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More from the article:
In her book, Hoedel examines the health issues of Elvis' grandmother, Doll Smith, who is believed to have suffered from Tuberculosis for more than 30 years.
“Again, something that doesn’t make sense, but continued to be passed down the family tree and then throughout recorded Elvis history as well," said Hoedel.
“This book explains how that Tuberculosis was most certainly a misdiagnosis in the early 1900s.
“From there, with the first-cousin marriage, we can see that Gladys most likely inherited two damaged genes and a more serious version of the disease.”