Epigenetics - What you need to know!

‘the branch of biology which studies the causal interactions between genes and their products which bring the phenotype into being.’’ Waddington C

Cancer rates are rising quick! In fact by 2030 it’s predicted that 1 in 2 of us will get cancer in our lifetimes! (1) ONE … IN… TWO and this number looks set to continue to rise after that… will it be 1.5 in 2 ten years after that…? what conditions will make someone a ‘non-cancering’ person? and How will society change when the majority of people actually expect to get cancer?

It’s a bleak prospect. Cancer leads to an incredible amount of suffering and if a lot of it is avoidable by getting the right knowledge in advance, how do we organise and disseminate that information in ways that benefit the most people?

Maya Angelou said…

‘When you know better, you do better’

So how do we know better?

What are the questions we need to ask?

How is cancer triggered?

Can we stop cancer from starting?

Is it genetic?

What can we do when we have known cancer genes?

There are so many questions!

Photo by Artem Maltsev on Unsplash

It’s a complex subject and I think it’s best answered by going right back to basics with the question…

What is…. epigenetics?

Think of your DNA, you might remember the standard double helix shape from chemistry class or you may have seen a DNA report. Maybe you have seen gene names on your DNA report with names like TYMS, or SOD2 or BRCA, or NFKb. There are literally hundreds of genes that are reported on in these DNA reports.

A gene is a section of DNA and it codes for a certain action, like repairing damaged DNA or making a certain protein for example. You can inherit mutations on your DNA from your parents which can make the actions of these genes too fast, or too slow (or not even be there at all ‘Null’). DNA reports will show you these mutations as SNPs (pronounced Snips) which stands for singular nucleotide polymorphisms. Whether that is a good or a bad thing for your body, depends on what the gene does and what the other genes around it are doing. It can get complicated and there is no point in just buying a DNA report, because it will seem to be written in a foreign language. You need it to be interpreted by someone who understands that language and who knows how to apply it to your life using knowledge of naturopathic medicine and nutrition.

Photo by Sebastian Bill on Unsplash

Your genes are inherited from your Mum and Dad, one version from each. They might be both the same kind, so either both ‘wild’ (the original human) or both ‘mutated’ so the strongest form of the mutation (homozygous) or you might inherit a different version of the gene from each parent (heterozygous).

Interestingly, genes only have about 20% (just under actually) influence in the picture when it comes to your health. That begs the question… where is the rest of the 80%+ influence coming from?