Until very recently DNA / Genetic tests were commonly used in paternity tests or in many instances with court cases relating to either crime, or immigration testing as means to establish parentage or to detect certain genetic diseases.
As the science has developed substantially, genetics can now be used to help make our lives better and enhance our wellbeing by providing us with more knowledge about ourselves.
Genetics helps us to understand what makes us who we are, what is good for us and where do we come from. Genetics now empowers us as the consumer to make better choices about our lifestyle on a whole new level.
It is now also possible to see if you are genetically predisposed to certain diseases (but it’s not a diagnosis ).
A variety of genes are tested associated with nutrition. For example, we can see if someone has more sensitivity to salt or caffeine and should consume less of it. But this is in no way a medical test. If someone with hypertension treats it as that, it might be potentially harmful. It’s merely a way to help you adjust your lifestyle but it is not the same as consultation you’d get from a medical professional. Genetic tests should never replace a medical screen or consultation with a medical doctor.
What is Nutrigenomics?
Nutrigenomics is the scientific study of the interaction between nutrition and genes. The secret to preventing many diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis, can be found in the link between your DNA and what you eat.
You need to understand your own body before you can create the right health and fitness plan.
Excerpts from Wikipedia for your reference
Nutrigenetics aims to identify how genetic variation affects response to nutrients. This information can be applied to optimize health and prevent or treat diseases. The ultimate aim of nutrigenetics is to offer people personalized nutrition based on their genetic makeup.
DNA, which is called variation may influence the way individuals absorb, transport, store or metabolize nutrients. This may determine requirements for different nutrients and this assumption forms the basis for nutrigenetic sciences. Moreover, different metabolic potential of the human body can imply an advantage in terms of natural selection. For that reason, for example, the ability to digest lactose, the principal sugar of milk, also in adulthood spread in cattle-rising populations.
A major goal in nutrigenetics is to allow nutritionists and physicians to individualize health and diet recommendations. Consequently, preventive medicine, diagnostics and therapies could be optimized. Comparative trials such as a current study from the German Sport University Cologne suggest that health counseling based on the results of a nutrigenetic analysis is more successful than conventional diet counseling.
The excitement about nutrigenomics comes from a growing awareness of the potential for modifications of food or diet to support health and reduce the risk of diet-related diseases. It is an emerging field that tends to unfold the role of nutrition on gene expression which brings together the science of bioinformatics, nutrition, molecular biology, genomics, epidemiology, and molecular medicine.
If you can learn the language of your genes and control the messages and instructions they give your body and your metabolism, you can radically alter how food interacts with your body, lose weight, and optimize your health.” (Mark Hyman 2006)
