Nutrigenomics

There is a budding field of science known as nutrigenomics, which is a personalized form of medicine that aims to supplement and correct deficiencies and imbalances based on individual genetic information. I hope to write more posts about this field, as well the related science of epigenetics; but if you’d like to know more, these terms will give you a starting point for some research of your own.

The current medical paradigm uses a kind of “one size fits all” approach to medicine. If someone is suffering from depression, anxiety, OCD, or a similar condition, their local health provider will probably prescribe a drug along the lines of an SSRI*, which causes the body to build up concentrated amounts of serotonin (a chemical that generally creates feeling of well-being or happiness). This is fairly effective, aside from potential side-effects of pharmaceuticals; but since it is a “one-size” approach, it requires guesswork and assumptions. Most of all, it’s important to note that this approach doesn’t even attempt to solve or even identify the root biological problem; it just masks the issue by sending a chemical to calm the brain.

Nutrigenomics, in contrast, is completely personalized and does aim to correct root problems. It uses personal information, like genetic susceptibility, to allow treatment of a person’s individual weaknesses. This approach is now being used to treat (or prevent!) conditions like alzheimers, arthritis, type I diabetes, miscarriages, neural tube defects, cancer, allergies, and—you guessed it–autism.

We all know that DNA is the genetic code (blueprint) that our cells and bodies are built upon. What you may not have considered is that our bodies are in a constant state of building. Whenever your skin heals over a cut, or your body needs to create immune cells to fight an incoming pathogen, your body looks at the DNA code as it builds new cells. This happens 1000s of times per second because of the many biological processes that occur with every breath we take. If one of the genes in the DNA blueprint is mutated (or has been inactivated), your body won’t be able to create the right response. This can cause problems with immunity, digestive function, attention-span, and so much more.

Justus
Stay tuned for a post later today about how we’re using nutrigenomics to help Justus.

 

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*”[selective] serotonin reuptake inhibitor”: such as Celexa, Paxil, Prozac, etc

For Reference:
Look up some of these terms to learn more about this science:
Nutrigenomics, Epigenetics, Methylation, MTHFR

I’m currently reading “Autism: Pathways to Recovery” by Dr. Amy Yasko, who is an expert and pioneer in this field. She was studying and practicing new techniques in biochemistry, molecular biology, and biotechnology years ago and somewhat accidentally discovered that her methods could reverse autism.

MTHFR is the name of one gene which is commonly mutated. MTHFR.net is a site run by expert Dr. Ben Lynch.

Read about a real-life example of nutrigenomics