What you eat today will even affect your grandchildren’s health

Choosing to follow a healthy diet involves being aware that you are what you eat. But did you know that replacing ultra-processed foods with fruits and vegetables can also benefit your next generations?

Studies of epigenetics indicate that environmental factors — including diet — in which a person lives have consequences on the genetic expression of their children and even grandchildren.

Understand the context

Until the emergence of the field of study called epigenetics in 1942, scientists considered DNA immutable. In other words, they thought that genes are not affected by a person’s environment and habits.

However, research shows that there are changes in gene expression that occur without changes in the DNA sequence. In general, they affect aspects of cellular function, such as those associated with aging.

The DNA remains the same, but the expression of the genes is different. Initially, most researchers believed that epigenetic changes could not be passed from one generation to the next.

Therefore, they thought that these changes occurred during pregnancy, a highly vulnerable period of development.

Thus, they discovered that several factors influence these changes throughout life: air quality, smoking, stress, physical activity and diet, among others. Thus, identical twins, whose genetic constitution is the same, can alter the expression of their genes if they cultivate different lifestyles.

For example, if one of them follows a balanced and healthy diet, but the other eats products rich in fat, sugar and sodium, the latter may have differences in the expression of their genes related to obesity.

In another study, researchers retested this relationship. They exposed pregnant rats to a commonly used fungicide. As a result, the offspring of these rats had a lower capacity to produce sperm, which increased infertility. This effect was passed on to the next generation.

The role of food

One of the most striking epigenetics research demonstrated that descendants of people who lived through the Dutch Hunger Winter, during the Second World War, had epigenetic changes in a gene called IGF2, which is related to growth and development.

Thus, because their family members had experienced a period of malnutrition, their genes caused changes that suppressed muscle growth. For the generation of these people’s children and grandchildren, this suppression led to a increased risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and low birth weight.

Other study confirmed the pattern in sheep. Researchers supplemented the males’ diet with the amino acid methionine from birth until weaning. This affected the growth and reproductive traits of the following three generations.

Eat now thinking about the future

These studies highlight the lasting impact that diets parents have on their children and grandchildren. They also serve as a powerful motivator for prospective parents and current parents to make healthier dietary choices, as the dietary choices parents make affect their children’s diets.

Meeting with a nutrition professional, such as a registered dietitian, can provide evidence-based recommendations for making practical dietary changes for individuals and families.

Although there are many unknowns about how diet affects and influences genes, studies show that there is an important reason for a person to make lifestyle changes.