Tag Archive for: All of Us

Why I Hate Cilantro

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The All of Us genetic testing results I told you about Tuesday included four more genes; by examining the results, these genes explain a lot about my personal tastes. These are not world-changing genetic analyses such as risk for cardiovascular disease or celiac disease, but they’re nevertheless interesting. Here’s what else I found out about myself from the results.

Bitter

Remember, there are five tastes: bitter, salty, sour, sweet, and umami. Evidently not everyone tastes foods the same way; I didn’t know that there are at least 25 different types of bitter receptors. I have a gene that allows me to taste flavors that are considered bitter. There are at least 550 foods identified as bitter; some I naturally like such as coffee. We can adapt to tastes regardless of our genes, so you may develop an appreciation of bitter foods if you don’t like them now.

Earwax

I have a normal gene that allows me to produce wet earwax as opposed to dry, flaky earwax. In the analysis I received, there’s a long explanation about earwax and what it does. One function of earwax is to keep the ear drum dry when water enters the ear canal; it made me wonder if that’s why some people are more prone to “swimmer’s ear” than others.

Lactose Intolerance

There’s a gene that, depending on its location on your DNA, will allow you to produce more lactase, the enzyme that breaks down the milk sugar lactose. If the gene is in a different position, you may lose your ability to produce enough lactase, and thus you become lactose intolerant. Mine is evidently in a good position because I digest dairy products just fine.

Cilantro

I have the “I hate cilantro” gene. Actually, that’s an overstatement. If you have the gene mutation, you have a slight chance of disliking it, somewhere between 3% and 21%. To me (and Paula), it strongly tastes like soap instead of the refreshing citrus flavor most people experience.

Those were the genetic results I’ve gotten so far—nothing earth shattering but interesting nonetheless. It explains a lot, including that in spite of your genes, you can overcome some of your genetic tendencies and learn to love cilantro.

Consider joining the All of Us Research Program. You’ll be contributing a lot and you just might learn some interesting things about your genes as well. Check it out at https://www.joinallofus.org//#.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

All of Us: Genetic Results

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Almost two years ago, I wrote about the All of Us Research Program. Their goal was to get 1,000,000 partners who would be subjects in the largest study ever done within the U.S. I decided to participate fully and that means answering questionnaires as well as giving blood samples and other basic health information. I’ve gotten some results but this past week, I finally got some of the analysis of my DNA and genetics.

Paula likes to call me a pure-bred: all of my ancestors were Polish (with the exception of one maternal great-grandfather), while her ancestors came from all over Europe. While I was curious what the ancestry portion of the DNA test would reveal, there wasn’t much doubt. The All of Us program goes through great pains to explain why some people might want to know their ancestry while others might not. I would describe it as fairly rigorous just to make sure that you really, really wanted to know the outcome.

My DNA confirmed that there was a 79% chance that I was from Eastern Europe, specifically Poland or the Ukraine. The rest of the probability was northern or western European. No great surprises there. They also tested for four other genes, and I’ll talk about those on Saturday.

They’re still looking for participants. I would urge you to go to https://allofus.nih.gov/ and be part of something greater than yourself. You might also find out why you love cilantro or think it tastes like soap.

Super Bowl Webinar Replay

If you missed out on the webinar, you can still watch it in its entirety by purchasing the replay. It was the kick-off event for longer term focus on helping you become the best version of yourself. Aging with a Vengeance is just the beginning; you’ll see more as the year goes on.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Something Greater than Yourself

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Who’s going to analyze all of this data when data collection is complete? A better question might be who couldn’t analyze this data. The answer: anyone who has a good research question and agrees to abide by the guidelines of data usage can run an analysis. That could even be you. That’s correct; if you have a question and the ability to analyze the data, you could do it.

The goal is personalized medicine, and not just a pitch by a practice that’s talking about typical healthcare. The goal is to be able to identify the subgroups that will respond best to preventive health practices or to specific disease treatments. In that way, a profile of the best techniques based on genetics, environment, and lifestyle can be developed.

The only disappointment I have is that they didn’t include the microbiome. That would require a stool sample and add a greater degree of complexity to a data collection procedure that’s already very complicated. Maybe they’ll add that in the future.

If you go to the All of Us website, you’ll be able to find the local healthcare system in your area that’s responsible for data collection. In Grand Rapids, it’s Spectrum Health. I did the surveys online and scheduled an appointment for the physical data collection; that was it. In our area, we get a $25 gift card to a large grocery store chain, so I’m planning to get the whole family involved; Riley’s off the hook because you must be 18 and able to give consent. Whether you’re healthy or not doesn’t play a part in it; in fact, the info from people with current health conditions may be even more important.

The Bottom Line

The opportunity to become a part of something significant doesn’t happen all the time and almost never in preventive healthcare. This is time to do something greater than yourself, I can’t tell you whether it will benefit you personally, but it will benefit humanity. Maybe, just maybe, it will benefit a friend or relative. Check it out and check in to All of Us.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Reference: https://allofus.nih.gov/

All of Us: The Details

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Before I go further, I want you to consider this. For every variable, there will be a million data points. Height: one million. Weight: one million. Hip circumference: one million. You get the idea—and this is the simple stuff. The blood work alone could have 100 variables. Then we get into the DNA. Every gene has to be mapped to examine specific areas of DNA to see similarities or differences between healthy people and those with diseases.

If you volunteer, you will be called a partner instead of a subject. You’ll be giving the study plenty of information, but the information doesn’t just go one way. In the future, when there’s something that can benefit your health, you may be given information critical to preventing or treating a disease. The data collection includes giving Informed Consent and HIPAA for electronic data collection. Then there are several surveys and perhaps more in the future. There will also be blood and urine specimens as well as some baseline anthropomorphic data.

One thing that’s on everyone’s mind is information security. The researchers go into great detail to protect your identity. Data will be posted only with a number instead of a name, and the highest level of encryption available today will be used to protect your identity. I take security seriously, and I’m comfortable with it.

Check out the link in the Reference to find out more, and if you choose, to get started now yourself.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Reference: https://allofus.nih.gov/

All of Us

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Would you like to be part of one of the largest studies ever attempted in the U.S.? I decided I would and I think you should as well.

The study is called All of Us, and it’s an attempt to gather health data from one million or more volunteers and then track them over many years. The purpose is to examine how genetics, environment, and lifestyle can impact health and disease. The goal is to provide a database that researchers can use to determine the factors that can impact the development of disease and eventually, the most effective treatment.

I think that’s the real goal. We have no idea what causes many diseases, whether it’s arthritis, cancer, auto-immune, or many others. The same holds true for treatments. Why does one treatment work well on one person and not at all on another? The genetics and environment as well as lifestyle may all have a role; with a database so extensive, just about every type of human subgroup will be represented.

What’s involved? I’ll tell you that on Thursday. If you want to read about all the details involved, check out the link in the References.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Reference: https://allofus.nih.gov/