Factors shaping you from the inside and outside. Why you should care.
Every physiological and psychological process undergone as a human being is influenced by a multitude of environmental feedbacks, factors, perturbances and inputs. It is imperative to focus on this critical area if you are looking to improve overall health, wellbeing and most especially the transformation thereof. Environment can be thought of as the lifetime accumulated effects of all, physical, psychological, chemical, toxicological and biological factors in which we steep our human cells, genes and psyche. In scientific circles we refer to this definition of environment as your Expososome (see chart below from D.Gayle DeBord et al., discussion of the “Use of the Exposome….” American Journal of Epidemiology. How well or badly one handles these “exposures” is typically reflected in overall health as expressed by some level of susceptibility, vulnerability, chronic condition or disease state.
Managing Your Environment: Low Hanging Fruit.
- The Company You Keep.
- Environment and Epigenetics.
- Microbiome and Gut Brain Connections.
(excerpt from kNOw MORE DIET Framework for Transformation)
The Company You Keep.
Am I suggesting that you must separate yourself from all friends, family, social acquaintances or co-workers? Maybe, it depends, possibly, but hear me out. In my last article on mindset , I included a famous quote from Gandhi. Specifically, he drives home the point of our destiny being derived from a continuum comprised of our thoughts, words, actions, habits and values. As goes the individual, so goes the group. What do you want your destiny to look like?
Birds of a feather flock together, fish swim in schools of the same species and people cluster in social circles with others of similar traits and habits. If you are not happy with your current health and wellbeing, then take a look at the company you keep. It has been said, that you are the sum average of the ten people you choose to surround yourself with each day. What do the people around you look like? On average, do they go to the gym or a tavern? Do they typically eat meals at home or on the go? Do they go for hikes or just sit by the pool? In summation, do they engage in mostly healthy habits or riskier and more detrimental choices as it pertains to overall health and wellbeing.
Once you have answers to the above questions, putting together a game plan to avoid, minimize, manage and deal with the less than positive influencers in your life becomes obvious. If you get nothing else from this article it should be that you need to become aware of the company you keep as an integral part of the environment shaping your decisions, behaviors, habits and outcomes. You can regain control without having to take a dramatic leap of faith.
Environment, Genotype, Phenotype, Epigenetics.
Many people feel they lost the genetic lottery. I hear it all the time, “I’ve got bad genes”, “Everyone in my family has disease X.” There is no arguing that it seems apparent certain disease states run in families. Are bad genes solely or fully responsible? Before we answer that question, I think it will be helpful to review a few key definitions that will help clear things up.
- Genotype: The inherited genetic constitution of an individual made up of their genes.
- Phenotype: The observable characteristics or traits of an organism produced as a result of the interactions of ones genotype with the environment.
- Epigenetics: Heritable phenotype changes without altering the underlying DNA sequence. In particular, the expression and control of genes specifically as it pertains to environmental factors.
We are constantly steeping ourselves, our cells and our genes in a sea of environmental perturbances that ultimately influence whether or not we express a particular disease state or condition. It is important to note, we can pass this new phenotype downstream to our offspring without altering our DNA. Thus, diseases appear to run in families and inheriting a poor genotype takes the blame. Pointedly, poor management of environmental exposure is either causal or contributory. The choices we make on a daily basis can literally bypass both evolutionary and genetic variances. Yes, familial trends can start or end with you! We may have a particular genetic predispositions, but clearly choices can be made effecting whether or not a predisposition becomes a condition.
Microbiome & Gut Brain Connections.
We human beings would be better described as symbiots. We are about 43% human cells with the remainder being comprised of viruses, bacteria, fungi, and archaea. We have about 20,000 human genes and roughly 20,000,000 microbial genes. In our colon alone we have trillions of bacterial cells comprising the bulk of our gut microbiome. It is estimated that our microbiota weighs in at roughly five pounds. Combined the small intestine and large intestine have a surface area of 2,700 square feet and qualify as our largest outward facing organ. Our skin is a distant second at around 20 square feet. Yes, I said outward facing and herein lies the problem. This barrier that is supposed to protect us against harmful pathogens that have entered the body is only one cell thick. Luckily it has help in the form of our microbiome.
Primer On The Microbiome.
The microbiome protects us and helps to operate and maintain the integrity of this cellophane thin barrier by further digesting food, actively defending us against other pathogens, extracting nutrients, and producing the building blocks needed for a multitude of metabolic processes. Several strains produce B vitamins, such as, B-12, thiamine, riboflavin, folate, biotin, niacin and also vitamin K. The “good bugs” produce butyrate which acts as fuel for our colonocytes. Further, they regulate immunologic, hormonal, and metabolic homeostasis and help control body composition and appetite. Our microbiome does all this and much more, as long as we provide a nurturing and favorable environment. You must do your part in managing this internal environment. Let’s start with the obvious.
“Foodome has been defined as the pool of all compounds present in a food sample and/or in a biological system interacting with the investigated food at a given time.” (1)
Who Are You Feeding?
They eat what you eat. If you eat a Standard American Diet don’t expect to have a healthy microbiome. Along with proper nutrition both stress and inflammation must be addressed to produce the optimum environment for your microbiome . When the proper environment goes awry, so goes the microbiome. When the gut microbiome becomes dysfunctional, the entirety of our gut function gets thrown off, and begins to have far reaching effect on nearly every biological system in the body.
What Should You Do to Maximize Gut Health?
A whole foods based regimen that limits or eliminates all processed starchy foods is imperative. Daily fiber intake derived from leeks, onions, garlic, sweet potatoes, squashes, apples, pears as well as other sources of non-soluble fiber should be targeted around 50 grams per day. In another article I will be addressing the negative impact of antibiotic use, glyphosate, chlorinated water, alcohol, sugar, anti-depressants and the use of antacids. In short, stop being a consumer of the health care system and start becoming a consumer of healthy food! Your microbiome will appreciate it and reward you with better health.
Gut Brain Connections.
Traditionally it was thought that the microbiome would “talk” to our brains via hijacking the communication pathways of our Vagus nerve. Now we understand there are also alternative signaling pathways through which the microbiome can communicate directly with the brain and vice versa. For example, the microbiome directly influences blood sugar levels by promoting gut derived serotonin production causing a spike in blood sugar. Some 90% of our endogenous serotonin is produced in the gut. Serotonin acts as both a hormone and a neurotransmitter regulating mood, appetite, anxiety, sleep, nausea, bone health and regular bowel movements.
At least two strains of microbiota are known to produce GABA, another neurotransmitter that helps to calm any excitation arising from stress or other outside stimuli. Further, we now know from a multitude of research that very specific regions of the brain have particular receptivity to signals from the microbiome either directly or through signaling molecules. There is tremendous evidence around regulation of mood, anxiety, perceived stress, pain, wound healing, depression and behavior that is all tied to either singular or compilations of particular strains of microbiota.
Stress And Inflammation.
The microbiome is very sensitized to the effects of stress and inflammation. Many people suffer from chronic long term states of stress in todays society. This stress, under the guise of a primal survival mechanism more aptly intended for short term acute situations (think saber tooth tiger), shuts down the vagus nerve. This means the typical response of releasing anti-inflammatory molecules is also shut down. In time this leads to a leaky gut and further exacerbates inflammation. Left unchecked chronic inflammation will cascade throughout the entire body and ultimately impact in all biological systems. Inflammation is thought to be the root cause of many chronic diseases and conditions. Sleep, mindfulness, meditation and exercise can all go a long way in helping regain stress resiliency and dampening the detrimental daily exposures in your environment.
You Are Not A Victim Of Your Environment.
Some folks will contend it’s all about their genes while others will challenge they are victims of a poor environment. It really is the same old discussion of nature verses nurture which you may recall from any basic science class. My contention is clear. As it pertains to managing your health it is necessary to adopt a broader and more comprehensive definition of environment. Furthermore, choices made on a daily basis shape how you handle your environment and significantly impact the quality of your overall health and wellbeing. You are the master of your environment.
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