THE GENETIC LINK
Both your environment and your genes can have a significant impact on inflammation. By: Shelly Malone, MPH, RDN
THERE IS A STRONG interrelationship between how our cells function, how our genes are expressed, our environment, our microbiome, inflammation and chronic disease. Cells - trillions of them are the building blocks of each and every one of us as living organisms.
What keeps our cells functioning appropriately (i.e. prevent disease) is providing them with the proper nutrients and avoiding insults from toxins in our environment. Our cells also contain our individual genetic makeup, or DNA. We are all individuals, made up of unique sets of genes and characteristics. What makes each of us even more distinctive is that our diet, lifestyle and environment can combine to determine whether our genes manifest into good health or poor.
To some degree, we’re able to choose to create a body that is either disease resistant or inflammation prone.
YOUR GENES ARE NOT THE COMPLETE PICTURE
What may be surprising is that for most chronic disease, your genes only make up 10% to 20% of your risk. What makes up the other 80% to 90%? Your environment - what you are putting, in, on and around your body. As Chris Kesser, MS, LAc, a global leader in functional and integrative medicine, so brilliantly states: “Genes may load the gun, but environment pulls the trigger.” Think of our health like undeveloped film, and the process in which it’s turned into a photo. Every aspect could influence what the end result is - the developing chemicals, processes, camera, and photographer. Each factor has the ability to make up for, or sabotage, another.
Similarly, our genes environment, diet and lifestyle are all powerful influencers determining the status of our health. The amount of toxins we are exposed to through our food and the products that go on and around our bodies, our ability to adequately eliminate those toxins, the nutrient deficiencies we may have, and other stressors our bodies might endure all determine how our picture of health develops. So no matter what you’re starting with, ask yourself how you would like your photo to turn out.
GUT MICROBIOME AND GENETIC EXPRESSION
Because our gut microbiome plays a critical role in regulating our immune response, detoxification processes and nutrient status, one of the biggest factors affected by your environment - and the effect our environment will have on our genes - is the gut microbiome. Research has recently identified that the key determinant in allowing environmental factors to trigger faulty genes is having a leaky gut. When leaky gut combines with environment insults (toxins from the environment, nutrient deficiencies) it acts as an alarm, waking those genes and allowing the predispositions to manifest.
The association of leaky gut and disease is especially strong with autoimmune conditions, but it is also associated with many other conditions, including:
Allergies and food sensitivities
Alcoholism
Autism
Cardiac conditions
Childhood hyperactivity
Diabetes
Inflammatory bowel disease (including Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis) and other digestive issues
Obesity
Mood/cognitive disorders
Skin conditions (acne, psoriasis, eczema, rashes)
Compounding the issue, a leaky gut means your primary immunity protective barrier is down, making your environment even more susceptible to harm from your environment (pathogens, toxins, undigested food particles) and further inflammation.