It Takes Two to Tango

Genes vs. lifestyle

- Smt. Sujatha Rao

Very often we hear stories of people who have lived well into their eighties and nineties by following a disciplined lifestyle. Occasionally, we also come across stories of people who led a very hedonistic lifestyle, succumbing to every whim and fancy of theirs, such as becoming a chain smoker, or being an alcoholic, or eating excessively etc., risking their health, and yet cruising well into their old age.

While the former points a finger towards the importance of good lifestyle habits, the latter highlights the significance of being born with good genes. This often leads to a debate regarding the importance of Genes vs Lifestyle. In terms of longevity, are our fates cast in our genes, or is there something we can do to take control of our health?

Recent research points towards the fact that 20%-25% of how long we live is determined by our genes while the remaining 75%-80% is decided by our lifestyles. It appears that we have incredible power and control over preventing chronic diseases and aim at longevity with a good quality of life.

Let us now examine some of the prevalent chronic diseases that are known to be linked both to the genes and lifestyles and study this phenomenon further:

(a) Cardio-Vascular Diseases

Genetic Factors

India is known to account for almost 60% of the world's burden of heart disease, despite having less than 20% of the world's population. CVDs are the number one cause of mortality amongst Indians and the rate of CVDs is double that of the national averages of the Western world. This is, to a certain extent, attributable to their underlying genetic predisposition, to metabolic deregulation, Cardiomyopathy (a disease of the heart muscle), smaller coronary arteries, higher levels of lipoprotein (a) in the body etc.

Lifestyle Factors