Turn on Your Genes!

The widely accepted dogma that your genes control your health destiny is quickly being uprooted by the emerging field of epigenetics. Epigenetics is probably the most important biological discovery since DNA!

How does it work? 

You’ve probably heard the debate of “nature vs. nurture” … meaning, is it the genetic code you received at conception or the environment in which you were raised that most influences your future health? The answer is both … but your actions, lifestyle and even your thoughts may have the most sway … and nothing is set in stone. Allow me to explain …
You’re in Control of Your Health Destiny

In his book, The Biology of Belief, Dr. Lipton explains the foundation of epigenetics, and how the true secret to life does not lie within your DNA, but rather within the mechanisms of the cell membrane. In this way -- which is contrary to conventional medical science -- it is actually the cell’s membrane -- operating in response to environmental signals picked up by the membrane’s receptors -- that control the “reading” of the genes inside.
For instance, researchers from the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University recently explained at Experimental Biology 2010 how altered "histone modifications” can impact the expression of many degenerative diseases, ranging from cancer and heart disease to biopolar disorder and even aging itself.
Rod Dashwood, a professor of environmental and molecular toxicology and head of LPI's Cancer Chemoprotection Program, told EurekAlert:

"We believe that many diseases that have aberrant gene expression at their root can be linked to how DNA is packaged, and the actions of enzymes such as histone deacetylases, or HDACs.
As recently as 10 years ago we knew almost nothing about HDAC dysregulation in cancer or other diseases, but it's now one of the most promising areas of health-related research."
You have tumor suppressor genes in your body right now, and these genes are capable of stopping cancer cells in their tracks. These genes are present in ALL of your cells, but so are proteins called histones.
As Dr. Jean-Pierre Issa at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center explains, histones can essentially “hug” DNA so tightly that it becomes “hidden from view for the cell.” If a tumor suppressor gene is hidden, it cannot be utilized, and in this way too much HDAC will “turn off” these cancer suppressors.
Now here’s where epigenetics comes in … there are many HDAC inhibitors out there that will essentially block the HDAC, allowing your tumor suppressor genes to activate and fight cancer. These HDAC inhibitors exist, at least in part, in common foods like broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, garlic and onions.
By adding these foods to your diet, you are supporting your body’s ability to fight tumors.
And this is only one example of many.
You are in control of your genes … and are changing them often -- daily and perhaps even hourly -- based on the foods you eat, the air you breathe, and the thoughts you think. It’s your environment and lifestyle that dictates your tendency to express disease, and this new realization is set to make major waves in the future of disease prevention -- including one day educating people on how to fight disease at the epigenetic level.

(Dr. Mancola, 2010)
 
Yours in health,
Rhonda