{By: Dr. Sajeev Nair}
Genetic testing is finally coming of age, but mainly for adults as of now. Did you know that it is equally, if not more effective, in children? If you need a simple proof, know that almost every newborn in the US undergoes a mandatory genetic test as soon as they arrive. What exactly are the exclusive benefits from genetic testing in children? There are too many to enumerate, but I will describe the Top-5, plus a stunning bonus point if your child undergoes a genetic test and the resultant lifestyle modifications.
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1) Prevent Lifestyle Diseases
Which parents wouldn’t desire to spare their child from lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension, obesity, cardiovascular diseases etc? That is why most parents keep a watch on what their kids eat, how much they sleep and how much they play. While such concern is good, it is rarely enough to prevent such diseases. For that you need a genetic test to detect genetic risks for any among hundreds of such diseases, and adopt personalised lifestyle modifications based on it.
2) Enhance Cognitive Performance
Next to physical health, parents are most concerned about whether their kids have the sufficient cognitive skills for understanding, learning and memorising the increasingly tough academics. Most often they resort to heavily advertised memory supplements, but with little or no effect. Only a genomic lifestyle management solution can truly find out your child’s genetic traits governing cognition, and suggest personalised 360-degree lifestyle changes to ensure peak performance in academics.
3) Optimise Performance And Safety In Sports
Most parents and even sports coaches assume that if a child naturally excels in a specific sport or fitness routine, his or her entire physiology is built for it. But studies show that genetic variants that facilitate intense activities like football, athletics or body building may coexist with genetic variants that elevate cardiac risks during such activities. Only a genomic lifestyle management solution like Eplimo can detect all such genetic variants in your child and suggest an optimised sports & fitness plan.
4) Build Emotional Intelligence And Better Behaviour
The advent of AI in the workplace is highlighting the role of emotional intelligence in career success. While knowledge can be delegated to AI, coping skills for the emerging challenges cannot be delegated ever. Hence, children with risks for developing issues like Anxiety, Depression, Attention Deficit / Hyperactive Syndrome (ADHD), Cognitive Disengagement Syndrome (CDS) etc are at a huge disadvantage. A genetic test can detect and help ward off such risks.
5) Extend Longevity
The influx of processed foods in this generation and the rewards accorded to sedentary behaviours in the modern workplace are inviting a most unfortunate development – retired parents sometimes outliving their working age sons and daughters. Risks for developing killer lifestyle diseases can be detected years or decades before they develop, via a genetic test, so that personalised preventive lifestyles can be adopted that can ward off such risks and thus extend lifespan and healthspan.
Now to the most stunning advantage of undergoing a genetic test in childhood itself. Personalised lifestyle modifications identified and prescribed by Eplimo are epigenetic in nature, which means that these not only change the expression of risky variants without changing the underlying DNA, but also that these changes in expression are heritable to their future offsprings. This is the big advantage of adopting a genomic lifestyle management solution in childhood or teenage itself, long before their offsprings are even planned for. In other words, it can eliminate diseases that have been running in families across generations – either obviously or silently – from getting transmitted genetically to future generations, thus building a healthier future for all.
The author, Dr. Sajeev Nair, is the Chief Curator of World Biohack Summit Dubai, and the Founder and Chairman of Bengaluru-based health-tech startup, Vieroots.
[Disclaimer: The information provided in the article is shared by experts and is intended for general informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.]
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