Injury Susceptibility, recovery, power and endurance are all key components when it comes to sports. By using the DNA Sport test from DNA Life we have the opportunity to gain insight on an individual athlete and how their genetic makeup impacts these factors. This test allows parents, coaches, and physicians to see certain polymorphisms that are implicated with increased risk factors for injuries as well as inflammation and oxidative stress.
Growing up, there always seemed to be the kids in P.E. who were just naturally better at sports than others. Additionally, there were kids who seemed like they were always hurt. Genetics make up a large factor when it comes to athletic performance and recovery. Over the last few decades, research has emerged proving that athletic performance, training responsiveness, injury-related traits, and the ability to recover from a workout can be tailored down to the genetics of an individual. We have the capability to do a genetic test on individuals so that parents and coaches are able to learn more about the athlete and how to train them for optimal performance. Many parents take advantage of this test and use it to see the athlete’s weakness, therefore building them up and focusing on that area. This allows the athlete to have a better chance of success. We use DNA Sport from DNA Life.
Our genes play a significant role in energy expenditure, appetite, and fat metabolism. This explains why two individuals doing the same diet can have drastically different results. The food we eat plays a significant factor in our overall health and wellbeing. Those who eat the standard American diet tend to be overweight, sick more often, have a poor immune system, and heavy inflammation, leading to chronic illness as they age. However, those who eat in favor of their genes and provide their body is organic nutrients have a lower BMI, reduced chance of cardiovascular issues, optimal body composition, and have more days of being active.Â
In order to obtain optimal health, the balance between oxidation and anti-oxidants is highly important. Anti-oxidants can be obtained through proper dietary support like vitamin C, vitamin E, carotenoids, and polyphenols. These foods interact with the free radicals and ensure they are no longer a reactive molecule.Â
Our genes have been linked to playing a role in inflammation. Polymorphisms have been noted in several genes to result in higher proinflammatory markers.It is important to remember that nutrition and lifestyle interventions can affect these genes and how they are expressed. For every one pound an individual is overweight, it puts ten pounds on your joints. This is an early life stressor that easily leads to chronic low-grade inflammation. Additionally, this can lead to diabetes, depression, cancers, and even cardiovascular diseases. We use DNA Health from DNA Life to determine an individual’s genetic predisposition and risk factors when it comes to inflammation
What is gluten? Gluten is the protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. Unfortunately, gluten is the stable of the American diet and hidden in many foods, like soy sauce for example. 99% of people who have a problem with eating gluten do not even know it. They associate their poor health and discomfort with other instances. However, this is becoming an epidemic as those who have a gluten intolerance or sensitivity (diagnosed or undiagnosed) have a significantly higher chance of developing heart disease. So far, there have been 55 diseases that are linked to eating gluten.
Crohn’s disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBDs are health issues that affect the digestive tract by causing inflammation that lasts longer than an…
Our diet can significantly affect inflammation in our bodies. Several foods can increase inflammation while other foods can reduce inflammation. According to healthcare professionals, a…
The first Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) conference was held in 1990 and discussed what PCOS is and how they were diagnosing and treating patients. They looked at oligo-anovulation, no ovulation, and too many androgens. Now, we use the Rotterdam criteria. This criterion groups together anovulation abnormal ovulation, clinical hirsutism acne (signs of hyperandrogens), and an ultrasound to view the presence of 12 or more follicles and determines if you have two out of those three then you are diagnosed with PCOS. There are multiple pathways that PCOS develops. Ultimately, these pathways are categorized into 4 groups: LIfestyle induced PCOS, Poor Fat Digestion/Sugar Burner, Inflammatory Diet/Poor Food Choices, and Genetic Predisposition.
For those who have lactose intolerance, the LCT gene transcription is reduced, leading to a low level of lactase. To turn off LCT it involves blocking an activator or turning up a repressor. In fact, it is theorized that lactase persistence is a human evolutionary adaptation to drinking milk from domesticated animals. The mutation in the gene started to appear around the same time as the domestication of cattle.
One of the best ways to reduce your chances of developing type 2 diabetes, or slow down the progression/reverse a diagnosis is to start with reducing inflammation. This is done by starting in the kitchen. Evaluate diet first. We should be eating clean locally sourced organic foods to fuel our cells and alter our genetic expression in a positive way. By eating pizza and chips we are adding fuel to the inflammation fire and throwing constant reactors at our genes, altering their expression to be pro-inflammatory rather than anti-inflammatory.
We have found that approaching the body as a whole rather than treating it as compartments gives patients the most relief. As research develops, it is found that over 125 clinical conditions have been identified as having inflammation along with oxidative stress as a contributing factor to the diagnosis! Oxidative stress impacts our bodys chemical pathways and genes!
As humans we need ATP to sustain life. ATP is the energy our bodies use to perform cellular functions. To properly create ATP we need a combination of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins (macronutrients). To take these substances and convert them into ATP, our body uses a metabolic pathway referred to as the Citric Acid Cycle. The Citric Acid Cycle is what supplies the body with its primary energy. Without proper energy production from the Citric Acid Cycle we feel fatigued, muscle pain, and our body may suffer from inflammation. Organic acids are a result obtained from metabolic pathways such as the Citric Acid Cycle. We have the ability to assess your body’s energy production by measuring Organic Acids with diagnostic lab testing.
The food we eat and our lifestyle as a whole has drastically changed over the past 100 years. Inflammation and chronic diseases are on the rise and nutrition is heavily responsible. The Wahls Protocol is a diet designed to improve health and reduce inflammation. The Wahls Protocol includes 3 cups of leafy greens, 3 cups of colored fruits and vegetables, and 3 cups of sulfur-rich vegetables per day along with cutting out foods containing gluten, white flour, sugar, dairy, and removing toxins. Remember, we are what we eat!
Food sensitivities are becoming more common as the food we eat is being produced differently. Many of us have food sensitivities that we are unaware of! These food sensitivities can have delayed symptoms, showing up after 72 hours after being ingested. Food sensitivities cause inflammation and could be the underlying cause of many other health conditions you feel. We work with Cyrex laboratories to test patients for food sensitivities and create a personalized diet plan to help you avoid these inflammatory responses.
Autoimmune diseases are a much larger problem than they were 10 years ago. Now, autoimmune diseases are reaching an epidemically high level with over 50 million people diagnosed. All autoimmune diseases are linked to one common condition, inflammation. An autoimmune disease is when the immune system is under constant inflammation from frequently recurring triggers. Those diagnosed with an autoimmune disease have one or more of these stressors overly present in their life:
-Chronic Emotional and Cognitive Stress
-Unhealthy Coping PatternsÂ
-Poor NutritionÂ
-Gastrointestinal Stress
-Adrenal Stress
-Hormonal StressÂ
-Inflammatory and Infectious Stress
-Toxic Stress
Let’s talk about stool testing! Although many individuals would prefer to do a serum test (blood draw), stool testing provides so much more information. Stool testing gives us the ability to see what bacteria in your gut are overgrown or depressed! With this information, we can create a personal treatment plan to ensure your microbiome is being fueled with the direct strands it needs to healthily replenish itself.