Gone are the days when we used to believe that our gene determines our destiny. With new scientific breakthroughs we are learning that our gene is a driver, but not the primary driver of our health and well-being. Today environmental factors are viewed as the primary driver of our health and wellbeing; and while this may be so, let us not discount the fact that we are the ones who will have to sit in the driver’s seat and take our health into our own hands.

Destiny in your hands

In the grand scheme of things, to be forewarned is to be forearmed. With new scientific evidences breakthroughs on such things as “epigenetics” it’s imperative that we try to make sense of how to capitalize on new information and use them to our advantage.   “Epigenetics, which literally means ‘on top of’ genetics, is the study of modifications to our genetic material that change the way genes are switched on or off, but don’t alter the underlying genes themselves”. Now if there is any element of truth in this statement, does it then mean that you and I have to be sitting in the driver’s seat to turn the switch on and off?–  Absolutely! While this sounds very empowering it will definitely take some intestinal fortitude to flick the genetic switches on and off. This is so because we have been set in our own ways acquiring bad habits not just from the womb but from the environment in which we live. Are we a hopeless helpless case? Absolutely not! https://www.livescience.com/37703-epigenetics.html

Alzheimer’s Disease Genetic Predisposition

It is believed that 1/3 of all Alzheimer’s cases are preventable, and in most cases, genetic predispositions will often times only manifest itself in the presence of certain environmental factors.  Therefore, even if someone is genetically predispose to Alzheimer’s disease, there are actions that can be taken to reduce developmental (risk factors) which all play a part in which genetic switches are turned on or off.  Environmental factors such as the foods eaten, physical activity, quality of sleep and the ability to manage stress all play a part in which genetic switches are tuned on or off. Making changes to these factors will allow one to flick the gene switch on or off and thereby control one’s destiny.

Value Added Client Care

At Caregivers With Hearts, we take the necessary steps to create the very best environment conducive to the health and well-being of our client care. We believe that a quality of life is important to our care so educating our client is therefore paramount on the list of things that we do to add value to our clientele. Life experiences teaches that the longest journey start off by taking the smallest step and that small step could be making better choices for our care. That choice could be something as simple as serving healthy foods, and incorporating physical activities to help our care manage stress on a daily basis.