Some people really are born losers, inheriting characteristics that lead to a succession of disasters, according to several reports of research by British scientists, published on Wednesday. Researchers from the University of Wales in Cardiff say studies of depression suggest bad luck runs in families and some people have a genetic propensity to create lifestyles that result in crises. One of the professors said it had long been well known that depressed people report more “adverse life events”. “What surprised us was that when we looked at their relatives, they also had more adverse life events,” he was quoted as saying. His best explanation is that people may inherit a tendency to create the situations which induce their depression. “They have a tendency to live chaotic lives,” he said. The theory was questioned, however, by Alan Smith in The Times, whom the paper called “Britain’s unluckiest man”. The 29-year-old had been stabbed, hurt in car crashes, nearly killed skiing, and burned by acid. “If this family thing were true, my brother would be the same, but he’s sailed through life,” said a gloomy-sounding Smith.