First, a brief overview of what Epigenetics is. Epigenetics is a branch of science that studies how our lifestyle (diet, stress levels, etc.) and environment affect our genes. All of these factors can activate or deactivate certain genes without changing the DNA sequence. Vicente Mera, Head of Genomic Medicine and Healthy Aging at SHA Wellness Clinic, says, “Although epigenetics is a very young discipline and we still don’t know about many of the factors involved, we do know that diet is one of the most important.”
To better understand how diet interacts with our genetic material, Dr. Mera gives the following example: “The Japanese have a very healthy diet, but also a very specific diet because it has hardly changed over time. This is one of the reasons that Japan is the country with the highest life expectancy in the world.” To understand how diet changes our genes, here are the results of a study of the living habits of 5,000 Japanese who stayed in Düsseldorf after World War II. Over the years, they adapted to their new environment and changed both their diet and lifestyle. Since they did not have access to healthy foods in Düsseldorf that they used to eat in their homeland, such as miso soup or daikon, they replaced them with local foods. As a result, the second and third generations of these Japanese became overweight and their life expectancy decreased. That is, epigenetic changes, both positive and negative, were passed on to the next generations.”
Our body composition is written in our genes, but we can change it through diet. Dr. Vicente explains it this way: “Overweight people tend to come from families with a predisposition to obesity. However, this genetic tendency can be reversed with a healthy and balanced diet. In fact, we know that certain foods have a high potential for epigenetic transformation and can prevent processes that accelerate cellular aging, such as oxidation and glycation, or improve autophagy.”
Interestingly, previous generations, despite lacking the information and knowledge we have now, ate healthier than we do now. We have messed up much of the epigenetics that our grandparents passed on to us. They ate a lot of fresh produce, the basis of their diet was the Mediterranean diet, which is very rich in fiber. Today, on the contrary, most people abuse ultra-processed foods, which leads to an increase in the number of people with digestive problems or the development of food intolerances such as gluten or lactose intolerance. A big problem with 21st century society is that we have so much to do during the day that we barely have time to think about food. It’s faster to heat up a ready meal in the microwave than it is to make a lentil stew. This ends up taking a toll on our health. However, we can’t try to live like we used to because modern lifestyles are completely different. So we have to find a balance, think about the medium and long term, try to go to the market, and cook healthy and, if possible, seasonal food at home. In short, taking the time to eat healthy is not only a philosophy of life, but also an investment in our health and the health of our future children.
