23andMe’s personal genome service provides a low-cost “comprehensive genetic scan of about 1,000,000 SNPs, which correspond to the SNP data being studied by the research community. Individuals provide saliva samples, which are analyzed, and the results are returned online.” In addition, 23andMe offers special methods for testing young children. Their test can help you “find out if your child will be at risk for 50 inherited conditions and learn about steps you can take,” according to their website.
Pfeiffer Treatment Center, Warrensville, Illinois, is an outpatient facility, associated with Walsh and his research, for children and adults, specializing in the evaluation and management of biochemical imbalances, which may be associated with the symptoms of developmental, learning and behavior disorders, or anxiety, depression, and mental illness.
The Walsh Research Institute was founded by William Walsh to continue his research efforts into a range of mental disorders and to train others around the world in advanced nutritional treatment of these disorders. Their website includes links to more information, new findings and
experts.
Myriad Genetics, according to their website, is a “molecular diagnostic company dedicated to making a difference in patients’ lives through the discovery and commercialization of transformative tests to assess a person’s risk of developing disease, guide treatment decisions, and assess risk of disease progression and recurrence.”
United States: Build a nurturing society for better health
Researchers at the University of Alabama showed that rat mothers denied access to materials needed to make a proper nest, grew anxious and spent less time mothering their young. Pups raised by these stressed-out rat moms exhibited increased methylation, a genetic neural-growth factor.
According to an essay in Science, this research “could have important implications for our own
society. The United States has the highest levels of inequality in the so-called developed world, and one-third of Americans suffer from extreme stress, according to the American Psychological
Association. If rodent research on epigenetics translates to humans, the implications could be far-reaching.”
Violence can be aggravated by medications
“We now know that certain forms of violence are programmed from birth,” says Walsh. More than 35 years of research has convinced Walsh that extreme violent behavior is predictable and can be prevented in most cases. He has amassed an extensive database, demonstrating a link between biochemical imbalances and mental-health disorders. These biochemical imbalances have a direct role in the malfunction of neurotransmitters, resulting in garbled signals between the brain and body. Walsh believes that drug-free natural therapies can correct these imbalances, thereby improving mental health.
Womb time is the critical time for the creation of healthy epigenetic processes.
“Epigenetics is a natural procedure. Something we have to have to be alive,” explains Walsh. “Most of it happens in the first month in the womb. If you don’t have environmental insults in the womb, in a normal healthy development of a baby, the epigenetic marks are established. These are chemical tags that are attached to your DNA and regulate these chemicals. Nutrition can turn on gene expression and cause the expression of these proteins.
“The key time to make an impact is before a woman gets pregnant and during the first month — even during the next nine months,” Walsh continues. “This is when these genetic variations get caused — autism and spina bifida and a predisposition for things like mental illness and heart disease, so nutrition is incredibly important. These bookmarks are there for the rest of your life.”
X chromosome: Environmental insults can lead to disease.
When X-chromosome genes are faulty, specific genetic conditions may result: hemophilia, Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy, and fragile X syndrome.
When the egg and the sperm join at the time of conception, they form the first cell of the baby. This cell has 46 chromosomes, made up of 23 pairs, which is all the genetic material needed for a new person to start developing. There are also two chromosomes that have been given the letters X and Y: These are the sex chromosomes.
Young people and “bad” behavior: Is it in their genes?
“The reality is that most children with terrible behavior were born with chemical imbalances that predispose them to this conduct. Flawed life circumstances can aggravate this condition, but the underlying cause is usually bad chemistry,” explains Walsh.
Walsh also explains that, unfortunately, sometimes the very medications provided to allay mental health have the opposite result — and end up causing tragedies. After studying some 50 school shootings, Walsh observes, “Most of them [the shooters] did not have a behavior problem until around 15 or 16. Then they got on an SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor) like Prozac or Paxil. Their genetic makeup caused an intolerance to these drugs, resulting in greater disturbance.”
Zinc as a protector against oxidative stress
Zinc is essential for protecting against oxidative stress and helping DNA repair. Some studies have suggested that increasing zinc in the prostate may help prevent prostate cancer. According to researchers at Oregon State University, about 12 percent of the U.S. population, including as much as 40 percent of the elderly, is at risk for zinc deficiency due to inadequate dietary intake and less absorption of this essential nutrient.
