Doctors want family histories of health. Some diseases appear to be genetically predisposed to affect offspring a generation or more down the road. Everyone has the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. The function of the BRCA genes is to repair cell damage and keep healthy cells growing normally. However, BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes with abnormalities or mutations can increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancers. Other genes can also be the genetic culprit for breast cancer, such as ATM, CDH1, CHEK2, PALB2, PTEN, STK11, and TP53 (p53) genes.
The medical industry tells us that genes account for around 5% of the likelihood of getting cancer. If you have those genes, are you guaranteed future medical procedures – surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy? I don’t think so. We have great control over genetic expression – our genes telling our various systems how to function properly. Lifestyle influences more things that people realize.
Doctors tell us that people are at a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease if they have the APOE e4 gene. Yet, people without this gene can get Alzheimer’s disease if they have abnormalities with ABCA7, CLU, CR1, PICALM, PLD3, TREM2, and SORL1. You are typically not tested for these genes and proteins. You become forgetful and a few years down the road the damage is done – you have some form of dementia. I think if we live long enough we all might develop some form of brain disorder.
Our family history can help us fight the battle for great health and reduce the risks associated with various genetic abnormalities. If one or two of your parents had Alzheimer’s disease, wouldn’t it behoove you to keep your brain operating at higher health levels? You know you might have a higher risk than your neighbor whose parents did not have Alzheimer’s disease. Do those lifestyle things that reduce the risks – daily exercise, balanced nutrition at every meal, regular stress relief, toxin removal from foods and personal care products to name a few.
I post tomorrow on the ability to reverse the progress of Alzheimer’s disease.