Perception is Reality

Imagine a rollercoaster.  The ride is an event that is essentially the same every time it runs, but the experience can be totally different depending on the perception of the rider.  One person may find it exhilarating and exciting while the next person may find it a terrifying and a miserable experience.  Both are right!  The important point in this example is that the physiology expressed as a result of each person’s experience will be totally different.  This is the basic premise of epigenetics – our experiences, environment, and perception has an effect on our physiology and even alters the expression of our genes.  This was the topic of a study and article published in the journal Pacific Standard.

In the study, the researchers were interested in the effect our social life has on our genes.  Their premise was to determine if there was a difference in the genes of people who were lonely versus those who were not lonely and had adequate social networks.  The researchers reported that our genes are not a blueprint as we were taught in high school biology.  Rather, the expression of our genes is what it’s all about and this gene expression changes as a result of the life we live.  In the study, they found “sharply different genetic expression responses” depending on whether a person felt lonely or connected.  The lonely people had less favorable gene expressions associated with inflammatory immune responses.  As I’ve reported in the past, these inflammatory responses are linked to every chronic disease process out there.  This article went further to compare high stress level to this social connectedness factor.  We all know chronic stress is linked to inflammation and disease, but it may surprise you that social isolation is the strongest established risk factor for chronic disease.  The researchers continued, “You cannot change your genes, but you can change the way your genes behave.  By adjusting your environment, you can adjust your gene activity.”  But wait!  There’s more.  Just like my rollercoaster analogy, perception was more important than reality.  In other words, those that perceived themselves to be alone and lacking social interaction had a worse gene expression, more consistent with chronic disease whether they were truly socially isolated or not.  The researchers concluded, “Environment and experience are not the same.  Two people may share the same environment, but not the same experience.  Your experiences today will influence the molecular composition of your body for the next two or three months; perhaps the rest of your life.”

A couple points can be drawn from this.  Most importantly, you are not broken or victim to your genes.  By changing your lifestyle, you can change your health and even the expression of the genes you’ve been dealt.  What you eat, drink, and breathe, as well as how you exercise, sleep, and think have a bigger impact on your health than anything else.  Secondly, make time for social interaction.  Join a club, get involved in a church group, or simply reconnect with old friends or family.  Honor those relationships and work on enhancing your social connectedness.