We’ve all heard the saying, “you are what you eat, ” but did you know that what you eat can also affect your future offspring?
What we eat, how much stress we undergo, and what toxins we’re exposed to can all alter the genetic legacy we pass on to our children and even grandchildren.
A woman’s diet during pregnancy seems to have a major impact on her baby’s epigenetic tags. Prenatal diets that are low in folic acid, vitamin B-12, and other nutrients containing “methyl groups” — a set of molecules that can tag genes and cause epigenetic changes — have been linked to an increased risk of asthma and brain and spinal cord defects in children.
Even eating foods rich in gene-altering methyl groups — such as soybeans, red grapes, and green tea — might protect against disease by silencing detrimental genes.
That suggests that what men and women eat and smoke, and what toxins and traumas they’re exposed to, can affect their children and even grandchildren.
http://theweek.com/article/index/238907/epigenetics-how-our-experiences-affect-our-offspring is a great article that describes how our experiences affect our offspring.
Now why would I want to talk to my patients about epigenetics? Women come to me asking why they are having difficulty conceiving. Women often blame themselves but the answer could be related to what our parents and grandparents were exposed to through diet, environmental toxins and stress.
A lot to think about. YOU aren’t just what YOU eat anymore!
batool says
this point of view is very important and essential in our life present and future , and as well affecting the new generation.
we can change it just by changing our food so the cure is in the kitchen , so we hve to change the life style by changing the way of thinking and to chang the food . we have to go simple natural life and to be ourselves
with love and respect