Genes Load the Gun – Lifestyle Choices Pull the Trigger

We once thought that the human genome served as a recipe for the body and that when you end up with “bad genes” there is simply nothing that can be done. Sometimes “bad things” happen to “good people” and that was long thought to be the end of story. The fact of the matter is that what you are born with is only the beginning of the story, and every day, through the choices you make in the area of diet, exercise, meditation, and Chiropractic care, you are actually recreating all aspects of your body. 

Although the genes you are born with can be thought of as loading your genetic gun, it is your life choices that determine when and even if those genes are ever fired. This is why a woman who carries a gene for breast cancer does not have breast cancer the moment she is born or perhaps even several decades into her life. Something must trigger the expression of that gene in her body. A recent study revealed that by practicing intermittent fasting, women can significantly reduce the chances of expressing the genes responsible for developing breast cancer. With life choices, we can choose whether or not to express certain genes.

There are thousands of epigenetic switches on each of our 25,000 genes and the position of those switches — whether the gene is turned on or off — is what determines when and if any given gene expresses in the body. 

So the question is, what controls expression of the genes? The pharmaceutical industry is spending billions of dollars looking for pills that will turn these epigenetic switches on and off. Science has already discovered the most powerful keys to the epigenetic switches. A clean diet, consistent exercise, centered emotions, daily meditation and Chiropractic care have all been shown to have powerfully positive epigenetic impacts. Currently, it is estimated that somewhere between 70 and 90% of our genes can be turned on and off epigenetically.

When you eat processed and conventional food, fail to exercise, and struggle to manage stress in life, you are playing a potentially deadly game of genetic Russian roulette. You cannot  continue to abuse the body without suffering in health. The beauty of how our bodies come to be is that we are now creating our body’s future experience with the choices made today.