Why Most Kids Aren’t Blessed or Cursed By Their Genes—More often than not, children aren’t prisoners of their genes—it’s what activates those genes that counts. The process is called epigenetics, and it has a bigger impact on children than what their genes are pre-programmed to do.
Epigenetics vs. Gene Editing
Your genome is like a book of operating instructions. Each book chapter runs different parts of the body. Each word is part of a DNA sequence in a chapter that tells that part what to do. But here’s the thing – much of your DNA doesn’t automatically know how to tell your body what to do – it gets programmed through experience. This programming happens when different chemicals are attached to DNA and act as on/off switches.
Those switches control the production of proteins that, in turn, tell parts of your body to perform different functions. The process of turning switches on and off is a response to your changing environment. It’s the environment that trips the switch. This is known as an epigenetic effect.
An epigenetic effect changes how the body reads DNA without changing the DNA itself. Because of that, the changes that occur are reversible. The DNA hasn’t been modified; only its actions are.
By contrast, genetic engineering changes the DNA. The words are scraped off the page and replaced. With that analogy, you can see how epigenetics is often safer than gene editing because your mistakes can often be reversed with epigenetics. With gene editing, reversal is a lot harder, if not impossible.
The nature vs. nurture debate is out of date.
Parents are bombarded by claims about whether nature or nurture has more impact on their children, but here’s why the debate is out of date: It turns out that nature is nurture; our genes (nature) are profoundly affected by our environment (nurture), in how they perform.
For example, it’s estimated that 70-90% of diseases are triggered by changes in the environment. The time frame for these effects varies widely. They can change things in a few minutes or hours (as with an inflammatory response to infection) or pass down through the generations (as with the impacts of a chemical like the pesticide DDT, which can make the grandchildren more susceptible to diabetes).
Scientists are finding that natural epigenetic effects occur more often than changes to DNA sequences. This is especially important for kids, because as they are growing up, their body is learning through experience which genes to switch on and off in response to environmental factors. It’s called learning by doing.
For example, a traumatic event can train genes to turn on a defense response that the body uses when it encounters other stressful situations. If the response is emotional withdrawal or aggressive defense, this is more likely to be favored over other responses in similar future situations. If a self-destructive response is learned, it can also be unlearned by training the body to turn different sets of genes on and off. Similarly, some studies suggest that racism experienced during early development can affect epigenetic signatures later on in life.
The Jekyll and Hyde Effect
The complexity of epigenetics is mind-boggling. On top of the thousands of genes in DNA itself, dozens of chemicals are used by the body to read those genes, and tens of thousands of proteins are generated as operating instructions to the body. This produces a nearly infinite set of combinations. These combinations can be good or bad for us.
The good and bad are what I call the Jekyll and Hyde Effect.
For example, some metals such as iron, zinc, copper, and manganese in trace amounts are essential for cells to function, but in larger amounts, they’re toxic and provoke oxidative stress that triggers an immune response. As metals build up, the body tries to get rid of them by using inflammation to clear away damaged tissue. Unfortunately, when the body can’t clear the metals anymore, the inflammation becomes chronic, and the body turns against itself. The Dr. Jekyll effect becomes the Mr. Hyde effect. That effect is a leading trigger of hypertension and heart disease and can start in the early years of life.
A special class of supplements with epigenetic benefits
A group of naturally derived chemicals known as polyphenols is especially important for turning off the inflammatory switches and turning on restorative switches that promote good health. Here are examples of polyphenols in food supplements with beneficial epigenetic effects.
- Curcumin: Has anti-inflammatory properties and promotes expression of genes involved in antioxidant defense.
- Resveratrol: Found in grapes and berries, activates enzymes that can change gene expression patterns and reduce inflammation.
- EGCG: Found in green tea and has anti-inflammatory effects through changes in gene expression.
- Quercetin: Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
- Ellagic acid: Found in pomegranates and berries. Shown to inhibit a destructive process known as DNA methylation that leads to harmful changes in gene expression.
Getting ahead of the curve in epigenetics
Some epigenetic therapies are in clinical trials. To learn more about the connection between epigenetics and health and the role of polyphenols in restoring health, visit Clinicaltrials.gov and search with the keywords “epigenetic therapy.”
- About the author: Douglas Mulhall’s latest book, Discovering the Nature of Longevity: Restoring the Heart and Body by Targeting Hidden Stress, explores prevention and therapies for heavy metals contamination. It is recommended by the American Institute of Stress and carries a Foreword by the Chief author of the American Heart Association statement on toxic heavy metals. He co-develops award-winning certifications and standards for products globally and is a registered ISO expert on a global standard for declaring the contents of products.
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