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Hello my dear lovelies,<\/p>\nHello my dear lovelies,<\/p>\n
It is 11:53pm EST on Thursday, 4\/7, and for the first time this challenge, I have written exactly ZERO words for the next day’s post, which is this post, for G<\/b><\/span> (Friday). I have caught up with my working ahead, and am no longer ahead, but now behind. (Tho H<\/b><\/span> is written, and, go figure, U<\/b><\/span>.)<\/p>\n So, I will do my best to be informative and interesting, but this may not be my best effort, for which I apologize in advance.<\/p>\n Anywho, G is for…<\/p>\n Think you know about genes and genetics? Think again. I bet you don’t know much. I know a little, and it ain’t hardly enough to shake a stick at. (Sorry, my Southern is showin’.)<\/p>\n What we do know is that our genes<\/b><\/span>, or our DNA<\/b><\/span> (deoxyribonucleic acid; that thingy what looks like a ladder<\/span>) determine a whole bunch of stuff about us. Like our eye color. And our blood type. This site, yourgenome.org<\/a>, explains this complicated science-y stuff in an easy-to-understand way. (Go ahead and read it. Then come back. I’ll wait.)<\/p>\n The most intriguing statement, to me anyway, is “The human genome is made of 3.2 billion bases of DNA.” I’m no mathematician (or scientist, obviously), but that’s a big number. And, on another page<\/a> of that same site, we learn “The DNA code contains instructions needed to make the proteins and molecules essential for our growth, development and health.”<\/p>\n Got that? Our bodies are made up of DNA, and our DNA basically tells our bodies how to behave and how to be healthy.<\/p>\n Within the DNA is a gene<\/a>, “small sections of DNA within the genome that code for proteins. They contain the instructions for our individual characteristics.” They come in pairs, and there are approximately 20,000 of them.<\/p>\n Following that, we have 23 pairs of chromosomes. (You’re probably aware that people with Down Syndrome<\/a> have 24 pairs of chromosomes.)<\/p>\n Whew.<\/p>\n And of course, we get our DNA and our genes and our chromosomes from our parents’ DNA.<\/p>\n I was curious as to my blood type. (For some reason I can never remember.) I asked my mom, who told me that she and my father both have A positive blood. Redcross.com has a handy chart<\/a> that shows the potential blood type you can have based on what your parents have. In my case, I could have either O or A. (I don’t think it’s O; I probably would have remembered that.) (And yeah, I should probably find out.)<\/p>\n I have green eyes. My mom has green eyes, and my dad has green eyes. Supposedly, if the Internet is to be believed, green eyes are pretty rare. But the color is definitely inherited and influenced by genetics.<\/p>\n In my case, I had a DNA Methylation Pathway Profile<\/a> done of my blood. (Sounds painful, doesn’t it?) (And by the way, they were very<\/em> specific about the color tube my blood had to be in. Very.) (I would also like to get the genetics test from 23andme.com<\/a>, because they test for different things and I’m curious about things like my ancestry. I know what I’ve been told<\/em>, but I’d like confirmation.)<\/p>\n Anywho, the test I had done looked at *30*<\/strong> of my genes. (I’ll spare you the list. You’re welcome.) Of those 30 tested, I have *11*<\/strong> that are mutated, and of those, *three*<\/strong> are double mutations, which means I got a mutated gene from both parents. They are homozygous (+\/+), which means both alleles (the little bits that make up a gene) are mutated.<\/p>\n Erm. Yeah.<\/p>\n Now, the report in my hand is careful to say that it “provides information about many facets of health and wellness, with an emphasis on important biochemical processes such as methionine metabolism, detoxification, hormone and neurotransmitter balance, and Vitamin D function” and that it doesn’t mean I actually have a disease. Tho of course I do. A lot of ’em.<\/p>\n The rest of the report, which talks about my mutated genes, is written in such science speak that I can’t understand it. (There’s a reason I majored in communications. And that my only C’s {a mere\u00a0two<\/em> of them; the rest were A’s and B’s} in college were in science.)<\/p>\n However, a very important thing I learned from the report is that my MTHFR \/ A1298C gene is heterozygous (+\/-), which means it’s half mutated. Per this very interesting site<\/a>, the MTHFR gene (and yeah, I know how you’re pronouncing it in your head… go ahead and snigger) is really important to your body’s ability to detox<\/a>.<\/p>\n In layman’s terms, that means the removal of toxins from your body, which is helped along by your liver, which gets rids of stuff via your pee or poop. Of course, generally people think of alcohol or drug detox, but detoxification also removes fat and poisons and other stuff that’s bad for your body, such as aspartame, carbon dioxide, and bacteria.<\/p>\n In my case, I have a mutation in that gene, so instead of getting rid of toxins, my body is hanging on to them. The article<\/a> says “The MTHFR enzyme will run at about 55-70% efficiency compared to normal MTHFR enzymes.” Okay, so if my math is correct (and it might not be), 30-45% of toxins are NOT being removed from my body. That’s potentially a lot <\/em>of toxins. Bad stuff that are hanging around in my body (like that gross Mucinex commercial. Ew.).<\/p>\n Now, I’ve already told you (numerous times) that I have mental illnesses, and that I suffer from a lot of pain. Not surprisingly, two of my COMT genes (V158M and H62H, whatever that means) are double mutated (+\/+). That particular gene<\/a> “helps break down certain neurotransmitters … includ[ing] dopamine, epinephrine, and norepinephrine.” In other words, it gives you the feel-good chemicals you need. And it can cause you to feel more pain.<\/p>\n I only understand the headline of this article about the COMT genetic mutation: “A pack of smart, hedonistic creative types with a lot of anxiety<\/a>.” Erm. But. Describe me, much?<\/p>\n My other double mutation is the MTRR \/ A66G<\/a> gene.\u00a0 It means I have “poor methylation of vitamin B12”, and poor “methylation<\/a>” can cause autoimmune disorders<\/a> (which I wrote about for my A topic<\/a>).<\/p>\n Again, there’s not a blasted thing I can do about my poor genes, but I can do things like take methylated vitamin B, and take lots of vitamin D, and change my diet to not eat junk (which I’ve done).<\/p>\n Now, you might be wondering how in the heck genes get mutated. Good question! They can get mutated by the person’s environment (by being out in the sun too long), or they can get mutated at conception<\/a>. The DNA can, for some reason, make an imperfect copy.<\/p>\n What I find terribly fascinating is that new scientific studies are showing that trauma can actually be passed down from generation to generation via our genes! This article on upliftconnect.com<\/a> summarizes the ideas, culling from articles published in Discover magazine<\/a> and The Guardian<\/a>.<\/p>\n I’ve read lots and lots of articles on this topic (which of course I can’t find now), and it makes a lot of sense to me. How can we not be changed by the experiences of our ancestors?<\/p>\n Is it any wonder I’m such a hot mess when you consider that I am the third generation child to be born when the father was off at war? That my father, and his father, and his<\/em> father were all in other countries during war, in the military<\/em>, and my mother, my grandmother, and my great-grandmother were all alone with newborns? (There’s a story there, and someday, I promise to tell it.)<\/p>\n So, there you have it.\u00a0 A whole bunch of words rambled on about genetics, which I’ve finished writing at 2:35am EST. (And for once in my life, I’m not gonna proof it 1,000 times; I’m gonna read it Hello my dear lovelies, It is 11:53pm EST on Thursday, 4\/7, and for the first time this challenge, I have written exactly ZERO words for the next day’s post, which is this post, for G (Friday). I have caught up … Continue reading … genetics<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Now, as part of being a Sick Person, my main doctor<\/a> recommended that I have my genes tested. Obviously, genes are what they are. They can’t be “fixed” if they are broken. But understanding your genes can help you understand your illnesses.<\/p>\nonce<\/del> three times, then hit publish.) (So if you see any errors, please pretty please<\/em> with sugar on top<\/em> tell me so I can fix them. It’s impossible to edit<\/a> your own work.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"