Genetic Testing

With services like 23andme.com we are able to get great information on what the default status of many health-related genes may be.  Some are slow, some are fast, some are just right.  How does this help your health?  Well looking at the different pathways that are involved and what may hinder or help a gene work (supplements, drugs, environmental toxins, etc) you can explore ways to help your health.

With the information we have learned from testing clients we have seen some significant results:

• MTHFR
  • involved in folate metabolism
  • have seen folic acid avoidance (confirmed by re-exposure symptoms) make a big difference in many patients
  • Dairy proteins can negatively impact the folate cycle.  We have seen milk re-exposure cause behavioral disturbances very quickly after a period of avoidance…within hours
• MTRR
  • involved in vitamin B12
  • a deficiency here can cause the decreased ability to recycle homocysteine
  • proper supplementation where warranted and inhibitor avoidance
    • alcohol and its breakdown product (acetaldehyde) slow the enzyme (MTR) downstream from MTRR
• COMT
  •  neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine as well as estrogen are broken down by COMT
    • slow variant
      • you have higher levels of these substances longer
      • can focus on lifestyle priorities such as stress reduction to reduce the period in which these hang around
      • meditation implementation has been helpful here
    • fast variant
      • burn thru dopamine faster
      • tyrosine, found in dietary protein, is a precursor.  Utilizing either tyrosine in supplement form or higher protein meals can provide higher levels of dopamine
        • have seen benefits here in suppressing ADHD type symptoms
• Glutathione
  • major antioxidant in body
  • variants here can reduce availability
    • action items if this is the case is supplemental dosing at proper times and intervals, combined with toxin and/or stress avoidance
• Histamine
  • histamine is known for allergy symptoms
  • there are variants here that can cause histamine to hang around longer
    • strategies can be histamine avoidance and nutritional support to aid the enzymes do their job
• PEMT
  • responsible for many things, including cell membrane formation (pretty important!)
  • deficiencies can lead or contribute to many things such as fatty liver, gallstones, and gut microbiome issues
  • action items are various dietary measures and there is supplementation available as well
  • have seen many people with this and interventions have been helpful
• VDR
  • Vitamin D receptor
  • there are many variants here we have seen.
  • sure vitamin d supplementation may help, but prioritizing safe sun exposure can be an action item here, especially living in the northwest

The whole genetic testing is still relatively new and unfolding.  While there is immense data, your genes don’t determine your health fate entirely in most cases.  The power comes from knowing where you are on the scale and what steps you can take to impact the efficiency of your genes no matter what variant you may have.  I don’t claim to be an expert, an active learner is more accurate, but we have seen the data from genetic reports help in most cases.  We can work together to forming an action plan off your genetic data.

23andme.com is a good start, ordering the ancestry profile (not their health package) and sending the raw data over I can upload into a couple different researched backed tools that provide insight; very heavy on the research.