Nutrigenomics: Your Genes And Your Diet
Have you ever wondered why some guys eat fast food
, candy, and chips every day, yet still manage to avoid high cholesterol? Have you ever known the answer why some people do not gain weight easily even when they eat steak, while others balloon just by looking at it?The answer has something to do with the human genes. When it comes to biochemistry and genetic makeup, everyone is unique. Individuals have different genes influencing metabolism, body functions and the risks for diseases. More than ten years ago, a medical breakthrough has brought a new approach to treating disease, not by invention of new medicines, but through personalizing diets based on one's DNA or genetic constitution.
Nutrigenomics is the science that examines the interrelations of diet and genes. It seeks to understand the effects of foods eaten and how the nutrients are utilized in the body, and how the gene expression is affected. Dr. Jose Ordovas, a geneticist at the Friedman School of Nutrition at Turfs commented that they are putting more science behind the nutrition and eager to understand why nutrients do what they do to whom.
In the United States, it is understood and accepted that diet is a major cause of many common diseases. In fact, many physicians linked one-third of all cancer patients to their diet. With nutrigenomics, it is possible to tailor a specific dietary plan based on someone's DNA or genetic makeup, in order to avoid diseases to which he or she is susceptible, and thus, maintain good health. For example, not everyone may benefit from a low-fat diet although it has many advantages.
So if your genetic constitution does not make you vulnerable to high cholesterol, it might be alright to continue eating high fat foods. However, if you are susceptible, then, by all means, you should reduce your high-fat intake and increase the soluble fiber consumption. About 15% of individuals are born with a liver enzyme that causes their HDL or good cholesterol level to reduce as a response to a particular dietary fat. On the other hand, in some people, the HDL level goes up to counterbalance certain bad effects of dietary fat on LDL or the bad cholesterol.
Ray Rodriguez, a geneticist at the University of California at Davis explained that the variants in our genes affect how we absorb, utilize ad store different nutrients. At time a single-nucleotide polymorphism results to the production of slightly different version of a protein or enzyme; sometimes, it causes a shift in an individual's bio-chemistry or metabolism.
The effects of polymorphism vary depending on where in a gene it is found, and the influence of the other genes. And alteration of gene expression can have different effects in different populations. For example, a variant gene called apolipoprotein E4 increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease among Caucasian or Japanese, but not among African.
Nutrigenomics is a new science, but its claims that diet and genes have a major influence on the wellness of an individual are backed by various studies in different fields demonstrating evidence. Soon, people can have personalized diet based on their genes, and improve their ability to combat chronic diseases.
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