Your Habits Are More Important Than Your Genes
The science of epigenetics denies the role of genes in disease generation, it focuses more on the environmental factors which are both external and internal.
External environmental factors are dietary habits, sleep quality, stress management, lack of exercise, socioeconomic factors and environmental pollutants. Internal environmental factors activating disease loaded genes are change in body ph, poor tissue oxygenation, body temperature, toxin overload, hormones, and deprivation of night sleep.
“The risk of becoming obese is 2.5 times higher for those who have double copies of a particular gene. However, a good diet neutralizes the harmful effects of the gene. This means that the critical factor is what you eat. Several studies have found that exercise diminishes the effect of the risk gene, but a new study is the first to study the effect of the gene in relation to food habits. The risk variant of the FTO gene is common in the general population. 17 percent have double copies, meaning they have inherited it from both parents. Another 40 percent have a single copy. The FTO genes acts in the hypothalamus, the part of the brain that regulates appetite and satiety, and the risk variant has been connected to an increased energy intake, especially in the form of fat”.
Pregnant Mom’s Diet Can Turn Genes on And Off:
“Researchers have discovered how a mother’s diet can alter her offspring’s gene functions without changing the DNA sequence. In the study, mice that were predisposed obesity, diabetes and cancer grew up healthy because their mothers were fed supplements that blocked the genetic trigger. The study represents the work of an emerging field called epigenetics, which is the “study of how environmental factors like diet, stress and maternal nutrition can change gene function without altering the DNA sequence in any way. Until now scientists have not known why these factors play such a large role in an offspring’s susceptibility to disease like cancer, stroke, diabetes, schizophrenia and others”.
Sources:
Science Daily September 11, 2009
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition September 2, 2009 [Epub Ahead of Print]
New York Times October 7, 2003
