How to Hack Your Genes to Better Health with Nutrition (without 23andMe)

You’ve probably heard of the plethora of DNA or genetic testing products out there — 23andMe, GenoPalate, Helix, and many more.

You’ve also probably heard of epigenetics: how to modify your gene expression with nutrition.

While the science behind these genetic nutrition tests are a little shaky right now, the science behind epigenetics and nutrigenomics is pretty solid.

Turns out, we have more control over our genes than we thought.

To go deeper, check out the work of Dr. Rhonda Patrick, Dr. Mitchell Gaynor or Nessa Carey. I’ve also included several reference links throughout this article to other great epigenetic resources.

How Epigenetics Works

Epigenetics means “on top of the genes”. When you ingest certain nutrients, those nutrients modify how your genes are expressed. Your genes don’t change, but your gene expression does.

The primary driver of epigenetic function is methylation and acetylation.

In terms of physics, it’s helpful to view methylation as an insulator and acetylation as a conductor. Methylation deactivates a gene (blocks the current) and acetylation activates a gene (allows the current).