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Unlocking your dietary blueprint: What I learned from genetic testing
I haven’t had much success figuring out what I should eat. I rolled with whatever tasted good for most of my life, and that didn’t work out so well. Then you have all these doctors, health coaches, fitness gurus, and dieticians telling you their meal plan is the way to go. Carnivore, vegan, paleo, pescatarian, Mediterranean, low-carb, low-fat, the list goes on and on. If there’s one thing I do know, no one food plan works for everyone. So how do you figure out the optimum diet for you as an individual or for those in your family? One area to explore is genetics.
One thing to keep in mind is that your genes are not your destiny. One phrase I heard is that your genetics load the gun, but your environment, lifestyle, and choices pull the trigger. Your genes may predispose you to one path or another, but that path is not set in stone.
People have used genetics to research family history and solve crimes for decades. It’s one thing to map the genome and match DNA, but studying how the genes interact and influence biology is much more difficult. This is the field of functional genomics, which has advanced dramatically in the last few years.
I’ve dabbled with genetic testing before. I wrote about the findings of my GenoPalate report in a previous newsletter. After listening to a talk by Kashif Khan, the CEO and founder of The DNA Company, at the Biohacking Conference, I remembered I never did a deep dive into their reports after I took the test in 2021.
Consumer DNA testing is a tricky business. Your genome doesn’t change, so the test is one and done. How do most gene testing companies make money? They sell your data. One of the reasons I picked the DNA Company is they make it clear that they have a different business model:
We do not sell your data. Not now, not ever. Our business model is providing you, the consumer, high quality advanced DNA tests and reports.
The DNA Company reports are incredibly comprehensive. I received separate reports in the following categories:
- Diet and Nutrition
