Study About Heredity

How does the dimensions of life and environment relate to heredity and genetics?  In this Study About Heredity we will provide information on the latest research in Genetics and other insight on the relationship between heredity and a living certain healthy lifestyle.  But, first, let’s look at the basics of heredity.

The Basics Of Heredity

Let’s start with Wikipedia’s definition of Genetics,

Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in living organisms.  

For an in depth Wikipedia study on Genetics, read here.

Every cell in the body with a nucleus has the same set of complete genes.  A gene is made of DNA and is the basis of all gene instruction, found a National Institutes of Health (NIH) “Studying Genes” study.  These instructions can be used for making molecules and controlling the chemical reactions of life.  Genes are the basic unit of heredity and also inheritable from parents to offspring.  Some genes are active (considered turned “on”) in some tissues organs, but not in others.  This is what determines between a liver cell and a lung cell.  Genes are switched on and off during development, and in response to influences from the environment, such as infection, per a 2006 NIH “Genetics and Health” study.

DNA is a double-stranded molecule made up of four building blocks called nucleotide, which are different chemicals that are abbreviated as A, T, C, and G, and are arranged in a certain order throughout the genome.  DNA molecules are replicated during cell division.  When a cell divides, the two new cells contain all the same DNA that the original cell had.

The human genome has three billion pairs of bases.  The most important molecules encoded by genes are RNA and proteins.  For simplicity purposes from smallest to largest, it all starts with DNA, then DNA makes up chromosomes, which makes a cell nucleus, a nucleus is part of all cells, and cells are part of body tissue and organs, according to a 2020 NIH “What Is A Cell?” study.

Particulars On The Laws Of Inheritance

In the early 1800’s, Gregor Mendel, through his work on pea plants, discovered the fundamental two laws of inheritance, found a 2020 Oxford Reference “Mendel’s Laws”.  He deduced that genes come in pairs and are inherited as distinct units, one from each parent.  Mendel tracked the segregation of parental genes and their appearance in the offspring as dominant or recessive traits.  He recognized the mathematical patterns of inheritance from one generation to the next.

The Law of Segregation states that each hereditary characteristic is controlled by two ‘factors’, which segregate, or separate, and pass into separate reproductive cells.  The Law of Independent Assortment states that pairs of ‘factors’ segregate independently of each other when germ cells are formed.

These laws are the foundation of genetics.  Many human traits, such as height and blood sugar, show a similar pattern, and these traits can also be inherited.  A good example, is tall parents having tall offspring.  Diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are very complex as well.  Traits are caused by many genes and affected by the life and external factors according to an older 1998 University of Minnesota Department of Psychology and Human Genetics research.  Physical traits such as eye color or height are often determined by the combination of multiple genes.

The basic laws of inheritance are important because they can reveal how a genetic trait of interest or a disorder can be inherited from generation to generation.  In sexual reproduction with two parents, half of the DNA of the offspring is provided by each of the parents.

The genetic material of a child is made from 50 percent of their mother’s DNA and 50 percent their father’s DNA.  Each person has twenty-two pairs of chromosomes described in a 2020 NIH “What Is A Chromosome?”.  For each pair of chromosomes, one comes from the mother and one comes from the father.  There are actually two copies of each gene, one paternal in nature (father), and the other maternal (mother).

Each person also receives one sex chromosome from each parent, for a total of forty-six chromosomes.  Some species can have many more than 100 chromosomes while others can have as little as two.  Complex traits are very difficult to predict from one generation to the next.  This is because the precise combination of genes contributing to the trait can not be predicted, or perhaps, even known, found a 2010 The Royal Society Philosophical Transaction B reviewed by the NIH.

Because of the unpredictability, Geneticist look for evidence on a specific disease such as heart disease, depression, or mental illness, looking at it from the perspective of how many from the family are affected over several generations.  Recently researchers isolated a gene in over 800 families members with depression.  The 2011 “A Genome-Wide Significant Linkage for Severe Depression on Chromosome 3” study, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, showed that at least 40 percent of depression cases can be linked to this gene, and environment and other factors make up the other 60 percent.

Gender plays a role in inheriting depressive traits, according to another 2006 American Journal of Psychiatry “A Swedish National Twin Study of Lifetime Major Depression” study which found that women had a 42 percent of heredity depression, to 29 percent for men.

Many researchers believe it’s not a single gene that causes depression but a combination of genes that lead to depression disorder.  Inheritance patterns like dominant traits show strong influence and clear patterns of inheritance, and require only one copy of a gene to express the trait, found a 2008 NIH Inheritance Patterns” research. Unlike common complex traits, recessive traits require two copies of a gene to express the trait.

A carrier is one who only inherits one copy of the gene for the recessive trait.  So for a carrier, the carrier does not receive the trait.  A 2020 NIH “What Are the Different Ways in which a Genetic Condition Can Be Inherited?” Review covers different ways in which a genetic condition can be inherited.

Many health conditions are caused by the combined effects of multiple genes or by interactions between genes and the environment according to a 2020 NIH “What Are Complex or Multifactorial Disorders?” study. The study has important medical implications for predicting the risk of a second child inheriting a disease-causing mutation from its parents.

How Stable Are Genes?

Genes can change or mutate, although this happens only rarely.  A mutation is a permanent change in DNA according to 2020 NIH “What Is a Gene Mutation and How Do Mutations Occur?” research.  Given our trillion of cells, some mutation is occurring all the time.  Studies show, like a 2010 Philosopical Transition R Social London B of Social Science (NIH) study, while some mutations are harmful, in most cases, there is no ill effects on traits. Some mutations are beneficial.  Some are indifferent.  Only mutations in sperm or egg cell can be inherited from parent to child.

One 2015 “Sperm Mutation Rate Varies Between Fathers” study of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute compared mutation rates in sperm and eggs for multi-sibling families, confirming that fathers contribute more mutations to their children than mothers.  They revealed for the first time that the rate at which mutations in sperm accumulate with age varies from father to father.  Our bodies can sometimes recognize and destroy harmful mutations, but not always.  This is how cancer cells begin, according to a 2019 “How do cancer cells grow and spread?” study.  In general, the genome is quite stable, and the genetic makeup we are born with, remains throughout life, with some exceptions:

The Gene Variables

Every person is born with genetic differences called variables.  Variations are why each individual is unique at the level of genes and traits.  Most variations are harmless, but some cause disease and are referred to as mutations, per a 2020 NIH “How Are Gene Mutations Involved in Evolution?” study.

Genetic and trait variations allows populations to adapt more readily to different environmental changes.  In fact, per this variation in population is necessary for evolution of species and natural selection, per a ScienceDaily Evolution Review.

Because many traits and conditions are the results of combination of genes and environment, we see a wide range of variation for most traits in the population.

Heredity And Family History

As you learn about genetics, you will learn a comprehensive family medical history is very important because it’s, most likely, the most useful genetic test to rely on, according to the NIH “Why Is It Important to Know My Family Medical History?” research. By collecting your family history over several generations, you can learn whether you may be at an increased risk for certain health problems in the future, and whether there are steps you can take to reduce your risks.  Quoting the NIH study:

Knowing one’s family medical history allows a person to take steps to reduce his or her risk.  For people at an increased risk of certain cancers, healthcare professionals may recommend more frequent screening (such as mammography or colonoscopy) starting at an earlier age.  Healthcare providers may also encourage regular checkups or testing for people with a medical condition that runs in their family.  Additionally, lifestyle changes such as adopting a healthier diet, getting regular exercise, and quitting smoking help many people lower their chances of developing heart disease and other common illnesses.

As an example, if your family has a history of heart disease, can you reduce the risk to yourself by not smoking, getting regular exercise, and eating a healthy diet?  Yes, you can!  So, you can potentially determine certain health risk that could affect you.

Inheritance Or Environment?

Some Philosophers such as Plato and Descartes suggested that certain things are inborn, or they occur naturally, regardless of life influences, according to a Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 2017 research “Descartes’ Theory of Ideas”.

Nativists take the position that all or most behaviors and characteristics (traits) are the results of inheritance.  Genetic traits, they believe, are handed down from parents, with individual differences which make each person unique.

Other well-known thinkers, such as John Locke, believed is what is known as “Tabula Rasa”, which suggests that the mind begins as a ‘blank slate’.  According to this theory, everything we are and all of our learned knowledge is determined by our experiences.  According to a 2009 Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council study, past experience is invaluable for complex decision making.  Learning from experience actually changes the circuitry in our brains so that we can quickly categorize what we are seeing and make a decision or carry out appropriate actions.   

Behaviorism is a good example of a theory rooted in Empiricism, which is the belief that most behaviors and traits are a result of learning and experiences confirmed in a 1993 “Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism: Comparing Critical Features from an Instructional Design Perspective” study.  Theorists such as John Watson believed that anyone could be trained to do anything or become anything, regardless of their genetic background.

Nature Versus Nurture Or Both

The nature versus nurture debate is one of the oldest philosophical issues within Psychology which actually has no one school of thought.  Wikipedia has an excellent research article “Nature Versus Nurture”. So, what exactly is the debate about? Here are the options involved in the confusing debate:

• Nature refers to heredity and the inheritable genes that determine who we are, from our physical appearance to our personality characteristics.
• Nurture refers to all environmental experiences that impact who we are, including our early childhood development and experiences, our social relationships, and our surrounding culture, for the most part.
• Nature and Nurture. Both play a role in defining personality, physicality, and intelligence.

Fairly recently, different branches of Psychology often take a one versus other approach.  Biological Psychology tends to stress the importance of genetics and biological influences, and according to a 2009 Developmental Psychopathology (NIH) study, there are ten good reasons to consider biological processes in prevention and intervention research. Behaviorism, on the other hand, focuses on the impact of environment has on behavior, as discussed in a 2018 Frontiers In Psychology (NIH) study.

When a person achievers tremendous academic success, did they do so because they were genetically predisposed to be academically successful, or, is it a result of an enriched educational environment?  If a man abuses his wife and children, is it because he was born with violent tendencies, or, is it something he observed and learned by experiencing his own parents’ behavior? Which is it?

It is generally accepted that certain genetic diseases, eye color, hair color, and skin color, are biologically determined characteristics.  Whereas, things like intelligence, life expectancy, and height, also having a strong biological influence, can also be directly influenced by environmental and other lifestyle experiences.

Like most aspects of human behavior and cognition, intelligence is a complex trait that is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors, per a 2020 NIH “Is Intelligence Determined By Genetics?” study because there are likely a large number of genes are involved, each of which makes only a small contribution to a person’s intelligence, and, factors related to a child’s home environment and parenting, education and availability of learning resources, and nutrition, among others, all contribute to intelligence.

Height is an another example of a trait that is influenced by both nature and nurture interaction.  A child might come from a family where everyone is tall, and he may have inherited the genes for height.  However, according to a 2020 NIH “Is Height Determined By Genetics?” study, if this child grows up in a deprived environment, where he or she doesn’t receive proper nourishment, he or she might not ever attain the height because of malnutrition.

Some characteristics are attributed to the environment, influencing such things as parenting style and learned experiences.  A child might learn through observation and by reinforcement to say, for example, “please” and “thank you”.  Another child may learn to behave aggressively by observing older children engage in violent behavior.  The “Social Learning Theory” suggest that children learn to exhibit aggressive behaviors because they observe others acting aggressively and can see how these behaviors are reinforced over time, according to a 2013 study published in Principals of Addiction Journal.

As an example highlighting the confusion is, a perfect pitch is the ability to detect the pitch of a musical tone without any reference.  Researchers, like a 2009 American Journal of Human Genetics (NIH) study have found that without a certain inherited gene even musical training from childhood is not typically enough to possess perfect pitch, although musical training or the nurture experience of training, is also beneficial and advantageous.

In the past, experts debated over the relative contributions of nature versus nurture often took a very one-sided approach, one side arguing that nature played the most important role, and the other side suggesting that it was nurture that was more significant, causing the ‘never-settled’ argument..

For example, on the nature side, a older 1990 “Sources of Human Psychological Differences: The Minnesota University Study of Identical Twins Reared Apart” study were similar to identical twins reared together, finding that genetic factors effect general intelligence and psychological differences. Another 2004 University of Minnesota “Genetic Influence on Human Psychological Traits: A Survey” study published in Sage Journals made similar claims.  A 2013 journal of Personality study published in Wiley Online Library found that in adult twins, genes determined their happiness, particularly, growth, self-control, purpose, and positive social interaction reinforce psychological well being.

However, today, most experts agree that both play a critical role, and interact in very important ways all throughout life.  For example on the nature and nuture side, a 2015 University of Queensland study published in Nature Genetics, found that a combination of complex genes at 49 percent, and environment, at 51 percent, determined ones’s health and well being.  Simply put, our bodies react to the “outside world.”  How about the outside, well, inside influence of a parent on a child?  How much influence does a parent have?  Turns out, much influence!  According to research, like a 2015 Pediatrics Dental (NIH) study, authoritative parenting style can determine the intensity of a child’s behavior, resulting in more positive behavior compared to children with authoritarian and permissive parents.

According to a 2011 Springer “Nature and Nurturing: Parenting in the Context of Child Temperament” study published in the Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, negative parenting could exacerbate frustration, and poor self-regulation in a child, while the adverse behaviors of the child could provoke a harmful parenting style.  On the positive side, the same is true for positive traits and positive parenting styles.  A older 1996 American Psychological Association (APA) PsycNet Developmental Psychology study found a similar correlation and conclusion, that a adoptive child’s antisocial traits are linked to the mental illness of biological parents, the adoptive guardian’s parenting techniques affect the adoptee’s disruptive behavior, and the other way around, as well.

On the positive side, an older 1962 APA PsycNet “The nature and nurture of creative talent” study found nurturing in school can cause a creative talent to bloom.  A parents decisions can determine a child’s growth and future success.  Although their genes determined their intelligence, the interaction as a parent with the child determines their progress.

Interestingly, geography, can not only influence a child’s environment, but also it’s traits.  Research from American Diabetes Association (ADA) concluded that a child’s risk of getting diabetes may be high because of family history, but may never contract diabetes because of the reason of the family’s custom of eating proper diet and participating in frequent family exercise.  Both positive influences through the environment.

Latest research seems to backup both nature (genes) and nurture (environment) play a role in the outcome.  However, the debate still goes on.  Researchers in Psychology still often tend to emphasize one influence or the other.

Some studies explore and emphasize the nature side, and other research might conduct studies addressing how things such as peer pressure or social media, influences behavior, stressing the importance of nurture.  What researchers do know and agree on, is that the interaction between heredity and environment, is often the most important factor of all, per a Kahn Academy video (1).

According to a 2015 ResearchGate editorial “Nature, Nurture and Human Behavior; an Endless Debate”, there are simply too many “facts” on both sides of the argument which are inconsistent with an “all or none” view.  So instead of asking whether the child development is down to nature or nurture, the question has been reformulated to “How much?, considering the fact that both heredity and environment influence the person one become, which is the more important?  The study concluded:

If we are really trying to help people’s lives, it is essential to get it right.

Conclusion

Although researchers and experts still debate the degree to which biological or inheritance, and environment, influences behavior the most, few experts now take the extreme view of one, and not the other, and there now a more balanced approach.  The reality is that there is not a simple way to interpret or disentangle the multitude of forces that exist effecting behavior patterns, as this Study About Heredity has clearly illustrated.

These influences include genetic factors that interact with one another, and all of the life experiences and environment that also interact and have to be in balance, such as social experience and overall culture, as well, as how heredity and life experiences intermingle, and it’s effect on ‘gene-environment interaction’ in mental disorders, for example, per a 2004 World Psychiatry (NIH) study.  The study clearly shows that both nature and nurture play important roles in the genesis of psychopathology. Modern research has moved more to investigating how genes modulate the role of life and its influence, and vise versa. What researchers do know and agree on, is that the interaction between heredity and environment, is often the most important factor of all, per a Kahn Academy video (1).

So, Where Does That Leave Us?

We now understand that both genetics and experiences and environment share a common role in developing our behavior and our character.   But, more importantly, the relationship of life and genetics interact with each other, and that interaction clearly effects overall health and well being, either in a beneficial, or harmful way.

Finally, let’s look at some very common daily activities that we can put into practice that will go a long way in not only achieving overall happiness, health, and well being, but also maintaining it throughout our lives:

• • • Socialize.  Develop and maintain strong relationships with a significant one, family, friends, and co-workers.
    • Social Engagement.   Make regular time available for social engagement, like dancing, or singing in a choir, for a sense of belonging.
    • Satisfying Career.   Pursue work or career which is enjoyable, fulfilling, rewarding, and challenging.
    • Physical Activity.   Participate in regular moderate exercise and some type of sports activity like swimming, or fishing.
    • Do Something Fun. Become involved in activities that interest you and give you pleasure, and a sense of purpose.
    • Spend Time With Pets.   To help you relax everyday take your dog for a walk.
    • Plant A Herb Or Vegetable Garden.   Grow a garden for the double benefits of exercise and fresh nutritious foods.
    • Worthwhile Goals.   Set achievable, worthwhile goals and display them where you can see them every single day..
    • Maintain A Positive Attitude.   Remain optimistic and always participate in positive activities.
    • Restful Sleep.   Get sufficient restful sleep on a regular schedule.
    • Volunteer For A Good Cause Volunteer your time for community service.
    • Be flexible and embrace change.  Change will happen regardless if you’re ready or not.
    • Live in the present TODAY.   Because yesterday is gone, and tomorrow, one is not promised.

      

    • Use Your Talent and Gain Knowledge and Skills.   Find your God-given talent and use it!  Increase your knowledge or learn a new skill on a regular basis.
    • Meditation.   Be mindful of self and use meditation or other forms of relaxations to re-center yourself daily.
    • (*)Eat Healthy Nutrient-Dense Foods.  All efforts should be made to purchase fresh, organic, non-GMO (non-genetically modified) lean grass-fed finished and free-range finished meats, grass-fed dairy and eggs (A); wild-caught fish and seafood (A); fruits, vegetables, raw nuts, and edible flower seeds (A); whole grains and complex carbohydrates, natural fermented foods; herbs and spices; monounsaturated cooking oils, and antioxidant drinks, infused water, and fruit smoothies (A).
    • Supplement With Peruvian Maca.   Supplement your diet with a natural and nutritious whole-food Adaptogen Peruvian Maca (A)
    • Take Action.   Take action to better your health and well being.
    • AVOID Eating All These Foods.   Americans also tend to eat more unhealthy processed or refined foods, or precooked foods, high-sugar, processed meats, or high-sodium foods, fried foods, or microwavable foods, that are full of hormones, preservatives, additives, flavoring, food coloring, and no telling what else, all of which are unhealthy, nutrient-deficient, and hard to digest, and should be avoided.  (*) What to eat?  At thus point it’s important to stress the importance of proper nutrition on the gene a molecular level of the human body, according to a 2011 The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) “Feed Your Genes: How Our Genes Respond To the Foods We Eat” study.

      

      How does one’s genes respond to the food one eats?  A 2006 NIH “Lifestyle and Related Risk Factors for Chronic Diseases” study found consumption of diets rich in highly saturated fats, sugars, and salt, typified by “fast foods,” resulting in lifestyle results in higher levels of risk factors, such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and obesity that act independently and synergistically. The study also revealed that the ideal formula is to limit your risk of most lifestyle-related diseases at the gene level is 1/3 protein, 1/3 healthy fat, and 1/3 carbohydrates.

      The average diet contain as much as 65 percent carbohydrates, almost twice as much as the ideal percentage, which affects not only the genes that cause inflammation in the body, causing them to work overtime, which was what we originally wanted to study, but also genes associated with development of cardiovascular disease, some cancers, dementia, and type 2 diabetes, all the major lifestyle-related diseases, as confirmed in a 2016 Missouri Medicine (NIH) study.

      Not only should one reduce the intake of carbs but the type of carbs eaten should also be complex or unrefined carbs and whole grains, as recommended above.  The NIH-reviewed 2003 Clinical Nutrition study also confirms the connection between genetics and proper nutrition and the importance of maintaining proper nutrition throughout life in order to assure DNA protection and genomic stabilization.

      Another 2019 Frontiers In Genetics reviewed by the NIH study addresses the particulars involving the genetics of taste, food preference, pathological eating behaviors, meal size, and meal selection, and this knowledge may enhance our understanding of the development of individual taste and related food preferences and food choices that will aid the development of tailored public health strategy to reduce nutrition-related disease and morbidity, rapidly expanding our understanding of how and why we need proper nutrition.

      The risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and related complications is increased by a variety of common genetic variants, and many of these are associated with specific eating behaviors, found a 2012 Nutrition Review (NIH) study. For more information and documented studies on this incredible natural whole food Adaptogen Peruvian Maca, please read the following:

      “Maca Powder Health Benefits”

      “Benefits In Maca”

      “Manage For Stress”

      What are your thoughts on this Study About Heredity? Do you agree with our assessment, and if not, why?  Or, if you have questions, please contact me below.  We suggest you read“Nature Vs. Nurture Examples” 

      (A) Use these links for more detailed information, more documented studies, and to purchase any or all these incredible nutrient-dense foods that will be a tremendous benefit to you at the molecular and gene level of your body.

      (1) Khan Academy Medicine