Your Epigenetics Gives YOU the Control over your Genes
Genes account for about 5-10 percent of our risk of disease,
but the vast majority, the other 90-95 percent of our risk of disease,
is determined by our environment – our epigenetics.
Sequencing the human genome was supposed to answer our questions about the genetic origins of disease, but the newest scientific field of epigenetics is telling us it’s a whole lot more complicated.
Epigenetics is the study of biological processes responsible for switching genes on or off. While genetics refers to the passing of genes from parents to offsprings, epigenetics refers to how those genes are used.
A metaphor we like to use is that our genes are like the instruments in an orchestra. The particular combination of instruments — the DNA we inherit from our parents — determines the kind of music that can be played. The thing that’s missing from this picture is the musicians; just as the instruments remain lifeless until somebody plays them, our genes need to be ‘played’ by the series of molecular changes known as epigenetics. Epigenetic marks are molecular beacons that land on the DNA and turn genes on or off. While the particular genes we carry can influence our susceptibility to a certain disease, whether we get the disease will often depend on whether those genes are switched on or off – our gene expression. And our gene expression is affected by our whole environment.
New research reveals that cancer is only 10 percent hereditary and 90 percent influenced by the environment and its triggers. Thus, you have control over how your life turns out regardless of your genetic makeup. This is what the science of epigenetics is all about. It presents us with the knowledge that even though it is possible to inherit ‘bad genes,’ the environment – toxins, foods, stresses, etc. – plays a huge role in silencing or activating those genes.
We have learned a lot about epigenetics from studying genetically identical mice and also from human identical twin studies. This type of twins contains the exact sequence of genetic DNA code. However, over time, one of the twin could find themselves developing diabetes, cardiovascular disease or cancer, while the other one stays healthy. This can be caused by a difference in their environment: the external environment such as the location they live (and air and light they get), their nutrition and lifestyle, and also their internal environment: their thoughts, beliefs, emotions and how they cope with stressors. The environmental factors which surround them result in different epigenetic expressions, despite identical genetics.
The human body consists of billions of cells, which are at the base of any function. The deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) refers to all the instructions required to direct cell activity. Nevertheless, every person has a unique DNA sequence, meaning that those sets of instructions are ‘coded’ in a different way for each individual. At the base of these sequences are our genes and are responsible for telling our bodies when and how to produce proteins that initiate biological reactions.
Proteins are the body’s building blocks, and we have up to 150,000 different kinds of them making up our cells. These protein molecules usually change their shape when triggered by environmental factors such as foods, toxins, emotions, etc. The implication is that, by altering our environment, we can essentially change our genetic outcome.
Epigenetic modifications occur when proteins bind to DNA and “mark” the genome. They do not alter the DNA sequence itself. Methods for marking the genome include DNA methylation, acetylation and histone modification.
DNA methylation is one of several critically important epigenetic processes the body uses to mark or tag genes. These epigenetic markers direct a cell’s transcription machinery to either read a gene or not—to make the recipe or skip it. DNA methylation is when a structure called a methyl group binds to a stretch of DNA and either activates it or silences it. Methylation turns a gene off. Demethylation turns a gene on.
Problems with DNA methylation are associated with many diseases including aging and cancer. Methylation is influenced by several factors, such as nutrition, exercise, toxins and stress.
Acetylation turns a gene on. Deacetylation turns a gene off.
A gene cannot activate or deactivate itself; a factor in the environment must trigger gene activity. Our team at Valeo Life helps you to examine all the different triggers and creates a treatment plan for the most important epigenetics for your personally. We look at triggers such as:
Even though not all environmental factors are within your control, most of them are. Our immediate physical environments such as our homes and workplaces impact our genetic expressions significantly, from the water we drink and the air we breathe to what we apply on our skins.
Today, toxins are everywhere. From processed foods to chemical-full beauty products, there are multiple avenues of coming into contact with these toxins. This results in negative implications on the kinds of signals that are sent to our cells.
As such, even though it might not be feasible to lower the overall pollution levels in your city, you can still choose to consume healthy foods.