There is a focus on personalized nutrition, but perhaps we should focus on personal responsibility for our health.
“Personalized nutrition (PN) is have taken root in the concept that one size does not fit all, and who does not they want are they special? The idea of personalized nutrition is naturally appealing to us; This is why simple messages that acknowledge personality resonate so deeply with us, and why such messages are popular in marketing and sales. This focus is unique provoked creating personalized foods, while suggesting that “3D printing of food seems to be a good candidate for food customization.”
Now, obviously there are some legitimate differences between people. Some have a peanut allergy and keel over if they eat peanuts, others have celiac disease and must avoid gluten, and some are genetically lactose intolerant. An enzyme mutation is common in some parts of Asia protects anti-alcoholism, because people with altered enzymes do not metabolize alcohol efficiently, so toxic metabolites accumulate. I posted an interesting video on fast and slow metabolizers of caffeine and the difference in health benefits. extends to sports activities. Caffeine is ergogenic – performance enhancing – but only in fast metabolizers, shaving more than a minute off a 10 kilometer (about 6 mile) cycle, while slower metabolizers either had no benefit or caffeine actually slowed them down and added two minutes to their cycling time, depending on how they break the code for these genes. You can see these results below and at 1:24 in my video How useful is personalized nutrition?.
But for most people, in most cases, we are are more similar than different.
Although there is a distinct minority of people who need a more personalized approach to nutrition, there is currently insufficient evidence to support truly personalized nutrition for most people. But there are a surprising number of direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies increasedoffering personalized nutrition advice. For example, there are supplement hawking companies that claim to help consumers improve micronutrient status based on a number of genetic variants, although most variants explain only a few percent of the level difference between people.
Personal nutrition is part of a broader push toward personalized medicine, also known as precision medicine. There is The “huge cultural attraction” of personal control over diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease, increased demand and intense business. But unlike monogenetic diseases, which are rare genetic diseases caused by a single defective gene, such as hemophilia or sickle cell anemia, most diseases are. caused with complex interactions between multiple genes and environmental factors that make “a major challenge for the implementation of personalized medicine.”
For example, take something like the height of an adult. Researchers have found there are at least 40 locations on our chromosomes associated with human height that are strongly inherited. Parental genes account for about 80% of the variation in height between people, but those dozen or so identified genes explain only about 5% of the variation in height between people.
Researchers to find those genetic links using genome-wide association studies, in which all chromosomes are scanned to look for statistical associations between diseases and any specific regions of DNA. It’s interesting, but companies that market genetic susceptibility tests to reinterpret these data as they predict individual risks. But all you really get are modest genetic associations with slightly increased disease risk and little predictive power compared to the significant contribution of things we already know, like lifestyle behaviors. At the same time, practice to use A person’s DNA “has been estimated to provide little or no useful information” for predicting disease.
For example, let’s say a genetic analysis of a person he says they are at slightly higher risk for some serious conditions than others in their ancestral group. This person was advised to exercise, lose weight, not drink too much alcohol, eat fruits, vegetables and whole grains. This is sound advice, but we should live this way regardless of our genetic risk. And we know—at least we should know—these simple, basic strategies for reducing the risk of common chronic diseases. “The problem, of course, is that very few people live this way. In fact, to be precise, almost no one lives this way.” It’s not just hyperbole – national polls to show that nearly everyone in the United States eats a diet that doesn’t even match the incredible recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines.
In fact, in the United States, there is almost no one to eat healthy diet”. Findings like these remind us that when it comes to public health, “concern about personalizing our prevention strategies based on genetic risk information borders on the absurd.”
Dr.’s comment
Here’s a video where I talk about fast and slow metabolizers of caffeine and the difference in health benefits as it relates to exercise: Favorite Fridays: Are the health benefits of coffee for everyone?.
For more information on lifestyle approaches, check out the related articles below.
