Nutrigenomics-How Your Diet Impacts Your Genes

YOUR GENES DO NOT DEFINE YOUR HEALTH

Your risk factors for adverse health conditions are largely dictated by the health of your mother during pregnancy.  Your Mother’s diet and lifestyle, along with everything that she was exposed to shortly before and during pregnancy, have a significant impact on your long-term health.  Under or over-consumption of macro- and micro-nutrients, and anything else with the potential to modify DNA, have genetic consequences that will likely last a number of generations.  While this exposure increases your risk for disease you have the power to control that risk. 

Knowing your health history puts you in the driver’s seat.  If you have an increased risk for any metabolic disease including obesity, hypertension, atherosclerosis and diabetes then it would be prudent to carefully manage your diet by consuming fewer processed foods and less sugar, and by eating more fruits and vegetables.  Increased consumption of fiber is correlated with a reduced risk for atherosclerosis since it lowers cholesterol levels.  You may also ask your physician or nutritionist for a nutrient blood test to see if you are lacking any critical micronutrients such as Vitamin D and iron.  If cancer runs in your family then it may be prudent to refrain from smoking and drinking alcohol.  There are many other cancer protective factors that can also be incorporated in to your lifestyle:  Physical activity has been shown to protect you from cancers of the breast, colon, rectum and endometrium.  Consumption of fruits and vegetables reduces risk for esophageal, lung, mouth, pharynx and stomach cancers.  Foods containing dietary fiber reduce the risk of colon and rectal cancer.

A well-informed expectant mother is encouraged to take prenatal vitamins to ensure adequate iron levels for healthy blood, and folate to ensure proper neural tube development of the baby.  An under developed spinal cord is an extreme outcome of folate deficiency.  Folate is a B vitamin that helps to regulate embryonic and fetal nerve cell formation.  Deficiency of both folate and Vitamin B12 are known to prevent special chemical modifications of your DNA that drive the expression of health regulating proteins.  Although this deficiency may not always manifest as a neural tube defect it may impact health in other, less obvious ways.  These deficiency outcomes may be reversed in future generations through proper diet.

Knowledge is the key to your health.  Research institutes committed to furthering our understanding of how our diet impacts gene expression include the Center of Excellence for Nutritional Genomics (CENG) at the University of California, Davis and North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC).  Both institutions are spearheading research efforts to understand how nutrients, plant phytochemicals, the environment and lifestyle choices impact brain and fetal development, cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart disease, fatty liver and other metabolic disorders.

 

*The content of this blog was derived, in part, from Nutrition Concepts and Controversies 13th Edition.  Editors:  Sizer and Whitney