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 | "Genetic Genie" | |
| Pages | 2 | MAP |
| Consider our place in the overall picture. If one is to see this page as representing the known universe, then our entire solar system would take up less space than a single comma. In like manner, in respect to our solar system, we are infinitesimal, and the range of conditions in which we exist is a very, very small part of the conditions that prevail. Temperatures range from absolute zero to millions of degrees above it. Yet our body temperature can only be allowed to hover a very few degrees either side of 36.9C. Left to its own devices, our homeostatic system does a wonderful job in keeping us at optimum performance levels. It starts and stops the flow of internal chemicals in accordance to our needs. Yet, out of ignorance, we persist in undermining its efforts. For several decades there has been a propaganda campaign aimed at impressing upon us that cholesterol is a malignant toxic comparable to heroin, the fast route to heart attacks. Yet, should our genes cease to order its production, humanity would become extinct within a generation. As in most things, it is only when they are carried to excess that things become harmful. Time to wake up and smell the coffee. |
| For far too long we have excused a range of unacceptable behaviour as being the unavoidable result of our genes. The loutish aggression of young males has long been accepted as not being their fault. The poor dears are the victims of their genes, too much testosterone in their blood. B******t! Their genes are the victims of their chosen behaviour. Aggression causes the excess of testosterone, and its excess is harmful to themselves. It is well to remember that females also secrete these hormones, and that the same rules apply to them. Cholesterolis manufactured by the body, and gene CYP17 then produces an enzyme that converts it into steroids, among which are cortisol and testosterone. Cortisol alters the configuration of the brain and is used throughout the body. Yet when we raise our stress levels we consciously raise the levels of both these hormones, and in doing so we suppress our immune systems. A direct result of raising the blood levels of these chemicals is the reduction in number and activity of white blood cells. It is these lymphocytes that are in the front line of our bodies defence systems. By sabotaging them we lay ourselves open to invasion by invading viruses and bacteria. And to the reactivation of retro viruses. |
| One of the ways in which we do this is when we decide to hate. When we hate, we damage ourselves, but not the object of our hatred. Declaring that we hate cricket, politicians, spaghetti, spiders, or members of another race, has no direct affect upon the objects of our hatred but raises the percentage of the potentially harmful hormones within us. Our hatred raises our stress levels, depresses our immune system, and increases the flow of acids in the stomach. Hence the old saying, 'eaten up by hatred'. Folklore did not encompass our current knowledge of internal mechanisms but it certainly knew how to read the signs. |
| Another way to raise our stress levels is to place an unwarranted premium on external events. One way to overcome apprehension is repeatedly face that which disturbs us. Suppose you are job-hunting yet dread the thought of having to go for interviews. Do not wait until you come across the invitation to apply for the job that you desperately want. Apply for a series of jobs that you do not want. By the time that the must-have job interview arrives, you will have acquired interview sophistication, and can feel quite blasé about it. Our genes dispose us to act in certain ways but it is our attitudes that galvanise them to go beyond the lines of self restraint. |
| A way of making ourselves feel good involves the stimulation of the monoamine, serotonin. This neurotransmitter in the brain has a marked effect on personality. It has been found that, in a disproportionately high number of cases, violent behaviour is linked to lowered serotonin. We are all familiar with the increase in irritability that comes with hunger, so no surprise to find a common linkage. The connection goes like this: Serotonin is a by-product of tryptophan that has to reach the brain before production can commence. There are, however, a number of other chemicals that use the same channel to reach the brain, and tryptophan has to compete with these to reach its goal. Insulin is a chemical that absorbs a range of these competitors. Insulin is secreted when it is called upon to digest food with high carbohydrate content. So to restore serotonin levels, eat a banana, a doughnut, or something of that nature. This will secrete insulin. Insulin will 'clear' the channel for tryptophan to reach the brain. Serotonin will then be produced from the tryptophan. Your attitude will be improved. |
| Our genetic code shows a history of not just individuals but whole races altering the instructions by purposeful, conscious decisions. 70% of the western world has the ability to digest the lactose found in milk. This ability is restricted to only 30% of Asiatic peoples. All babies start out with this capability but, when they are weaned, the body sees that the production of the enzyme that makes it possible is now superfluous to requirements. So enzyme production is switched off. However, European tribes were pastoral farmers, keeping herds of goats. So milk, being in plentiful supply, was added to the diet and the enzyme continued its work. On the other hand, Asiatic tribes largely remained hunter gatherers. A case of culture pre-empting biology. |
| Alcohol is a toxic poison, which it is why it is used to sterilise wounds by killing bacteria. It is also poisonous to humans which is why people prefer to say that they are drunk rather than intoxicated. No-one wants to admit that they have intentionally poisoned themselves. Yet Europeans are capable of swallowing large amounts of this poison with comparatively little short-term side-effects. Until quite modern times Europeans lived in squalid, disease ridden cities in which the water supply carried a multitude of bacteria that gave rise to plagues of dysentery and typhoid. These harmful invaders were killed off by the fermentation process used in beer and wine making. Sensible people drank these fermentations in preference to water. They had, unwittingly, instructed their genes to produce a class of enzymes known as alcohol dehydrogenases. Australian aborigines and North American Indians have a very low alcohol tolerance. Their forebears lived their lives in wide open spaces with a plentiful supply of clean water.Their bodies never had the need to learn how to live with this toxic poison. Our bodies are bio-electric-chemical machines. The exact number of chemicals, and their purposes, is still part of the mystery waiting to be solved. What is already clearly understood is that it is our attitudes towards external events that have a major role in stimulating or suppressing their production. We are the masters of our own destiny. |