What if you could change your ‘gene expression’ with your thoughts?

I left my job in London to come home and spend quality time with my parents in Malaysia. They were getting older, and I wanted to spend their twilight years with them. That also meant that I got intimately involved with their health. Whether it was their genes or the unconditional love and compassion that they gifted us and received in return, they lived healthy full lives till their last days. Appa (dad) passed at 94 (2019) and Amma (mum) passed at 86 (2018).

Although their general health was good, my parents had some areas of concern. For Amma, it was her heart, teeth, and knees and for Appa his prostate, joints, and glaucoma. With care, medication, and small changes to their routines, they lived with it without too much disruption to their lifestyle. They travelled internationally until the last 3 years and led a full life. Eating their favourite foods and walking up the stairs in their home till their last days. They were married 64 years.

I attribute this to their mindset and lifestyle. They were made of tough stuff and were mentally active (read widely). Appa climbed Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak in Malaysia 4095m, at the age of 62. Amma was active and always of service to others. They were vegetarian for just over 50 years and were teetotal.

I wanted to be involved in their medical care, so I took them for their medical check-ups. It also gave me insights into the body and its ageing process. I would read up on their symptoms and discuss them with their specialists.

I remember at the dentist, as some of Amma’s teeth were extracted at intermittent intervals for various reasons, I made a mental note that I would not let it happen to me. I asked the dentist how much was genetic and how much was care and hygiene. She was inclined towards genetics, but I challenged that.

And I made more mental notes as I took Appa to the ophthalmologist, Amma to the cardiologist, both to their orthopaedic doctors. I collected many mental notes for myself and them. Just to give you an idea, I had Amma’s cardiologist change her medication after a discussion with him. I noticed that her beta-blocker (to keep the heart’s pace constant) was impacting her memory. Luckily for me, the young cardiologists were open to discussing my findings from DR. Google! I changed her cardiologist too! Her first cardiologist was old school.

But making mental notes was not enough, I had to do something about it. So, I changed my dental care routine and changed it again last year after a scare. I changed my exercise routine to focus on heart health. I work on my musculoskeletal system and visit my ophthalmologist yearly. All for the purpose to prevent rather than cure. To avoid/delay ‘failure’. Because we often appreciate function only upon failure or pain.

I also check my body chemistry. I was always good with yearly blood tests but read my own results. I found that this was ineffective. I then found a functional medicine doctor who focuses on the holistic system. She reads blood reports through various permutations and combinations for any points of concern based on the patient’s goals. That led me to my Vitamin D deficiency! I had been deceiving myself.

One other point of concern was my blood sugar levels. I wanted to know why, when I did endurance sport like mountain biking, I would get hungry within an hour whereas my husband could go for longer without food. I found out that my sugar level was low but my natural insulin levels were high. I was told that I needed to reverse that through my diet. I am glad to report that on my last blood test done in December 2020, my sugar and insulin levels have reversed themselves. It took a few changes to my daily diet regime.

I was/am trying to change the way my genes work, epigenetics, through behaviour and environmental changes. I know friends and family who have resigned themselves to inherit their parents’ genes. I did and do not buy into this. And consider medicating an option of last resort. I still have all 32 of my teeth and my cholesterol and blood pressure are both well. I know others my age and younger who are already medicating for the latter and do not have all their teeth.

So, what’s my point in writing this? Am I illness-proof? NO. Am I ageing-proof? Definitely NOT. Have I changed the expression of my genes? Maybe a little. I am still ‘young’ and my genetics may still show up? But I also believe that if we stay on top of our body and brain’s basic needs – sleep, exercise, food and thinking – we can change the way our genes work and not succumb to our ancestral genetics.

I am discerning what I want and actively doing what I need to do to change my genetics. Only time will tell. But I am hopeful. And it all started with my mental notes, a thought.

DR. Joe Dispenza states, through his research, that we only inherit 1-5% of our parents’ genes. The remainder 95-99% is environmental. When you change your environment, you can change your life. And with the environment, he prioritises thinking.

Now, there’s a thought!

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