The tag, "Smart Foods" is an easy way of explaining what nutritional genomics is about. In the early 1990s when consumers and nutritionists began to research smart foods, a new book on nutrition tailored to metabolic genetics piqued many peoples' interests: The Metabolic Basis of Inherited Disorders, 6th ed. McGraw-Hill, New York: 2649-2680, 1989. You are what you ate. And what you are eats you.
The idea is that your metabolic type (based on chemical, electrical, and genetic tags that switch on and off--the specialty is called epigenetics) is connected to what you eat. The notion of metabolic nutrition being connected to epigenetics led to a search for reading lists. This arena now is a branch of nutritional epigenetics.
Within human ecology, it compares the latest research in nutritional genomics/epigenetics to how smart foods (foods tailored to your genetic signature) influence risk of chronic disease. What you eat shows up in your genetic signature.
The longer science studies the entire genome (rather than the specific SNPs for certain chronic diseases) the more information will be forthcoming on how food and lifestyle influence your health based on the genes you inherited.
According to the National Institutes of Health, “Your lifestyle, the food you eat, and where you live and work can all affect how you respond to medicines. But another key factor is your DNA, which contains your genes. Scientists are trying to figure out how the make-up of your DNA can contribute to the way you respond to medicines, including pain-killers with codeine like Tylenol®#3, antidepressants like Prozac®, and many blood pressure and asthma medicines.
Scientific discoveries made through this research may provide information to guide doctors in prescribing the right amount of the right medicine (or foods, lifestyles, and supplements) for you. According to the National Institutes of Health , the institute "aims to improve the health of all Americans through medical research that solves mysteries about how the human body normally works—and how and why it doesn’t work, when disease occurs. One goal of this research is to help improve the good effects of medicines while preventing bad reactions.”
How do your genes respond to what you eat? Are you getting tired of the slogan "smart foods for intelligent people?" How many diet-by-DNA book titles are there? Books on smarter foods? Tailored menus? Extracts of plants? DNA tests for ancestry? Ancestry and eating? According to Dr. Fredric D. Abramson, Ph.D, S.M., President and CEO of AlphaGenics, Inc., "Genes are distributed, function, and work in such ways that nearly every reasonable diet could work well in about six percent of the population."
There is a strong connection between nutrition and genotype, especially in regards to your cardiovascular and central nervous system health. So you need to tailor foods intelligently to your genetic expression. The media buzz about ‘intelligent’ foods or ‘smart’ foods really means eating clean, safe, whole foods based on what your individual genes need to thrive. Not all your genes would be tested.
Or instead of a test, you could go by your body measurements, as outlined in naturopathic doctor, Peter D'Adamo's book, the Genotype Diet. If you're interested in some free food information research, you might start at Food Resource, an online source of science-based and business savvy information for the food industry at Oregon State University.
What happens when diet books for your condition aren’t working for you? Maybe salt restriction isn’t working but exercise is for your condition. How do your genes respond to nutrition and nourishment? Are your genes intelligent, conscious, and communicating with you about their nutritional needs? If they are, so are the foods you eat. Your genes interact and collaborate as a team.
The language of communication is written in the human genome, in your individual genetic signature—in your DNA, in particular SNPs, and in all your genes and cellular material. Even your blood type is expressed in all the cells of your body. How does all this information signal you about what ‘smart’ foods and nutraceuticals to choose in order to help prevent or delay chronic disease for which your genes may put you at risk?
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Nutritional genomics and epigenetics are buzz words in the news. Tiny tags switch good genes on and bad genes off based on what you eat or the supplements you take, according to documentaries on resveratrol and green tea extract (acting as metholizers).
Testing DNA for ancestry and DNA-driven nutrition also bridge gaps in regard to customizing smarter foods to your genotype. Phenomics is about customized healthcare and medicine tailored to your genetic profile. Pharmacogenomics is about tailoring your medicine dosages to your genetic profile, but not all your genes are tested.
The nutrition angle remains to ask the question: how smart do you want your food to be? And what should you know about tailoring your food to your genes or metabolic body type? We all eat on the molecular level, the chemical level, and yes, the atomic level.
Resveratrol is big news. Many people take resveratrol capsules and decaffeinated green tea capsules daily. The Genotype Diet book also mentions resveratrol. Check out some of the reviews on resveratrol and decide for yourself which product meets your requirements for standardization. Look for validation. When you read a review of resveratrol or any other supplement, ask whether it is an objective review or is the review made by someone selling a product? Check it all out.
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Comments
Resveratrol can help you to lead a long and healthy life so says many
doctors. Red wine alone does not supply enough resveratrol to achieve the
full range of benefits because one glass of red wine has only about
1mg of resveratrol and you need about 250mg/day. You need to take
high potency resveratrol supplements to achieve the results documented
in scientific studies.Resveratrol Supplements can also help you control
your weight naturally by increasing energy, reducing cravings, and limiting
your appetite.According to Wikipedia, Consumer Lab, an independent dietary
supplement and over the counter products evaluation organization,
published a report on 13 November 2007 on the popular resveratrol
supplements. The organization reported that there exists a wide range
in quality, dose, and price among the 13 resveratrol products
evaluated. The actual amount of resveratrol contained in the
different brands range from 2.2mg for Revatrol, which claimed to have
400mg of "Red Wine Grape Complex", to 500mg for Biotivia.com Transmax,
which is consistent with the amount claimed on the product's label.
Prices per 100mg of resveratrol ranged from less than $.30 for
products made by Biotivia.com, jarrow, and country life, to a high of
$45.27 for the Revatrol brand.
I'm very excited to see the outcome of this research. I remember the Book Eat Right For Your Type about how your blood type affects what you should be eating. Smart Foods is something I'm not familiar with though.
The one thing that I still question is the idea of the "French Paradox". If the idea of Smart Foods or Blood Type Foods really exists, wouldn't we see some differences amongst the different types in France?
Also will the Super Foods (http;//www.benefits-of-resveratrol.com/10-super-foods.html) still be Super Foods after the research is complete?
Scientific studies show that taking Resveratrol Supplements can help prevent damage to blood vessels, reduce bad cholesterol, slow down aging, reduce inflammation, fight off free radicals that destroy the body, help overall cardiovascular health and even help drop unwanted pounds.
These studies were conducted on laboratory animals and believed to have similar benefits on humans. The only real proof is from personal testimonials of people taking Resveratrol Supplements. These types of Anti Aging Supplements will only be proven many years from now when people are living to be 120. Doctors are comfortable that taking Resveratrol now will slow down the aging process and prolong life expectancy.
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