Megan Sullivan's Cracking The Genetic Code

Epigenetics is the word that is used for genes that are modified in order to assist certain genome sequences that lead to diseases and disorders. Epigenetics has come a long way since the first genome sequence had its draft breakthrough in the year 2000 (NOVA 2012). From depression to cancer, epigenetics has made its way through to provide families with the appropriate knowledge and perhaps medication in order to avoid these diseases and disorders in the future.
The video, “Cracking the Genetic Code,” brought for forth some great interest in knowing that the medical field and technology has advanced so much that we can know our own genetic code and if we will or develop a certain disease. But aside from the interest, the video also brought forth some heartbreaking moments for the patients in the video that have had their lives turned around due to medical illness. For example, Megan Sullivan, who was a fully functional young woman and started showing symptoms of Huntington’s disease during her college years, which reduced her functioning to where she can barely even speak for the interview. It’s hard seeing somebody that young go through those huge obstacles, or in the case of Catherine Ellton, who, in a way, was forced to speed up her life in a

way that she did not approve of. She was torn between either remove her breasts and ovaries due to a predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer or have a child immediately and then have the procedure done. As shocking as it may find out the news that you will develop a certain disease or disorder, is it worth it knowing this information and preventing issues in the future?
After interviewing my family and completing Dr. Oz’s “Million Dollar You” worksheet, I found quite interesting results with disorders and diseases that run in the family, that I had no idea some family members had. Some diseases, disorders, and medical issues were obvious and of no surprise that they ran in the family. Medical conditions such as allergies and asthma were known to be running in the family due to situations and encounters where the condition had shown its force. I have dealt with chronic allergies since I was young, younger than 10 years old. I was put on allergy shots at the time and had already gone through rigorous allergy testing that involved allergy skin tests with needles twice in my life. Allergy shots that lasted three years combined with taking over the counter and prescription medication. All of which, the allergies were still able to surpass and come through on a daily basis.
Medical issues such as depression, high cholesterol, and migraines appear frequently in the family and affect multiple of us.

I, myself, have suffered from hypothyroidism since I was 21 years old, and depression during my high school years. This disorder came to us by surprise since nobody in the family has a history of thyroid disorder. The age the disorder came about was probably the most shocking part that left even the doctor questioning the blood tests. But in the end, it was something that was going on inside of me that needed medical attention before it became it worse and symptoms would be more apparent. Such diagnosis has lead me to make certain decisions in my life such as exercising and eating the right

foods.
Depression affects billions worldwide, making it the most common mental illness. “Epigenetic events alter the chromatin structure” in order to alter the expression of the disorder, as well as behaviors that arise from depression. The way the person responds to medication is another one of the results of modifying such genome (Uchida, Yamagata, Seki, Watanabe et al. 2018). Epigenetic drugs also come into play in these circumstances where the behaviors and depressive pathways in the brain are “irreversible. (Schroeder, Mark, Krebs, et. al. 2010)”
After taking the living to 100 questionnaire, produced by Thomas Peris, M.D., M.P.H., showed results that surprised me based on my lifestyle, but it also offered ways to improve my health and increase my life expectancy. Regardless of any ongoing medical issue such as hypothyroidism and possible development of high cholesterol and diabetes in the future, these lifestyle changes and additions can help me overcome these diseases and fight my way up the ladder of life expectancy. So far, staying active has been one of the best activities I could be doing to lengthen my life expectancy. I am currently exercising 5 – 6 times per week, which includes cardio, weightlifting, and strength training.
Incorporating these results into my lifestyle, nutrition, and medical factors of my life can help improve my health right now, as well as the future. For example, reducing the number of ultraviolet rays I expose myself to could add about one year of life. Currently, my exposure is not at its healthiest point. Things like going to the beach without sunscreen, even though we know it is very damaging, in excess, are things that slip our mind when we go to the beach. We often don’t think about the future, the now is what fills our heads and at the moment we’re no thinking of all the damages we’re doing to our skin, bodies and mental health. Eating sweets is something I do very often, on a daily basis. Minimizing these sweet to once or twice a week can increase life expectancy by two years. So my predisposition to diabetes will become weaker by adjusting my diet to the recommendation from the questionnaire. Going to the doctor regularly to test my blood sugar, blood pressure, and for cancer could help increase my life expectancy by two years.
Finally, epigenetics has come a long way throughout the years allowing people to not only know their predisposition but also have modifications with medications in order to change their future behaviors and reactions such disorders and medication. The information mentioned above will allow me to become a healthier person all around and allow me to be more aware of the actions I take and what I put into my body. These behaviors will accompany me to the later stages in life ensuring that I live a long and healthy one.