I believe that if you asked most people they would have some general idea that the food they consume and their physical activity have some vague impact on their general health. What would be a surprise to them would be how significant the correlation of the lifestyle choices they make is on their Health and Well-Being. The intake of required amounts and quality of nutrients are important on a vast array of health and well-being issues. From many conversations with patients over the years, often they felt sentenced to a genetic connection to diseases that many of their parents, grandparents and other relatives had suffered from.
I am not saying that genetics do not play a part in having a disease a relative may have had. What I am saying is, many issues can play a part in many disease processes.
Let me give an example. Let’s say you come from a family of which one or both your parents and two of your four grandparents have type 2 diabetes. Let’s assume your family has a history of living a sedentary lifestyle. Let’s also assume that they all consume a poor diet with regard to nutritional quality. Finally they all have poor skills with regard to dealing with stress. Finally let’s assume you have followed the family lifestyle in all three areas and follow the same food, activity,and stress reduction lifestyle as your family. You are all overweight and you now have type 2 Diabetes.
So the question is did you get diabetes due to genetic code or because you learned poor behaviours that vastly increases the risk of Diabetes as well as many other diseases.
While I can not guarantee there is no genetic component to your diabetes it is very possible that learned lifestyle choices that run through your family play a strong part. As a matter of fact there is significant scientific evidence of the huge impact personal choices have on Health and Well-Being. This includes physical activity, nutrition, and stress reduction. This is not only on Diabetes, Heart disease, Cancers, but also with MANY chronic diseases.
I have personal experience on this issue. Though I don’t enjoy having my older self picture seen publicly I do believe it may be helpful for others and as I said before, we are all human.
My family had a large assortment of the typical lifestyle related diseases that are common in modern society. Diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and many more are common in my family. I also had significant diabetes while on medication. Following a major part of the core of what we do in Becoming Optimal You, I now take no medication and my blood sugar is in the lower normal range. I am grateful and blessed. There are no guarantees but Lifestyle changes can be amazingly powerful. I am very excited to delve more into this as we progress.
Wishing you better Health and Well-Being.
Dr. B
