For most of us, avoiding these is just as important as the genes we inherit.
As someone who studies genes, I tend to give the environment short shrift. I have to watch out for that because it can cause a blind spot in how I think about biology. And how I live my life.
As readers of this blog might remember, I was recently diagnosed with metabolic syndrome just as I was undergoing DNA testing. This was a wake up call in a couple of different ways.
First off, it confirmed my belief that we can’t get a lot out of genetic testing for complicated diseases right now. I couldn’t look at my DNA and predict that I would end up with high cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose levels. We just don’t know enough yet about our genes to be able to figure this out from any available DNA test.
But I could have guessed this might be a problem from my lifestyle and family history. All four of my grandparents developed Type 2 diabetes which put me at a pretty high risk. Of course I thought I could beat the odds and so lived a life filled with couch sitting, Haagen Dazs, and Double Western Bacon Cheeseburgers (cue Homer Simpson drool). Until my diagnosis.