Is schizophrenia a hereditary Disease?

my husbands sister has that. I worry with my two children because my friend keeps saying I better wacth out. My sister in law has three children and her parent take care of them because her husband died using drugs. She never leave her parent, never work, never help taking care her own children.She had 1st baby when she was 16, she is 30 years old now. so over all she is a burden. Grandparent always busy w/ her children and don't have time for my children. Her mother (67 y/o) works harder to supply for the kids. Some times I don't want come to visit them, I am afraid she will be bad model for my kids. I know I am kind a too tough, maybe there is any solutions for me. Thanks anyway.

Unfortunately Yes - it is hereditary. but there are wonderful medications out there and the person can live a full life as long as they continue taking the meds on a daily basis.

Yes. Is she really scizophrenic or did she participate in the drug use with her husband ? Drugs and alcohol are capable of causing permanent brain damage also. It sounds like she's suffering form a deep depression.
I used to work in a mental hospital.
Yes.
yeha my mother has it and i have to sget check itf u have it it will start to show arpund the ages 17 18 or 19
it is not heridatary, at least it is not believed to be so. Currently, most professionals believe it is a result of a physiological condition brought out by a life stressor.
There may be some biological predisposition to schizophrenia, but that doesn't necessarily mean the disorder is hereditary. Even when disorders such as depression or bipolar disorder (formerly called manic-depression) seem to run in families, it's not clear -- at least, to psychologists, who tend not to adhere as strictly to a medical model of mental illness as do psychiatrists -- how much is genetically based and how much is passed down behaviorally through family dysfunction.
For instance, a depressed parent may not be able to emotionally take care of his or her children or provide a role model for managing emotions. A psychotic parent may be neglectful or abusive to his or her children and inadvertently teach them a distorted approach to reality and relationships with others.

There also may well be an interaction between biological predisposition and environmental factors in disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. That is, some people may be born with a predisposition to a type of disorder, but not develop it unless they experience severe stress or some type of trauma, especially during their formative years. The role of trauma such as childhood abuse in the development of psychotic disorders is not well understood. A recent study found that almost all psychiatric inpatients with psychotic disorders reported trauma earlier in life.
DSM-IV TR