Does eating healthy really make a difference?

Dr. Broosan's Research Corner

Does eating healthy really make a difference?

We all know that a proper diet is good for us. However, many people think that eating healthy is an impossible luxury. It's actually a lot more achievable than you think. The sooner we realize that eating well is an absolute requirement for health, the sooner we can take responsibility for our health. Sure, it may be easier to go to a fast food "restaurant" and pick up "cheap" meals, but doing so will lead us away from health and is much more costly in the long run.

So what are our genetic requirements to express full health? What is healthy and what is not? And, where can we go to for this information? While one may think the recommended daily allowance/intake (RDA/RDI) is helpful, RDA/RDI is based on how much of a vitamin/mineral is needed to avoid deficiency. To make this clear, it is not based on how much you need to be HEALTHY. It's based on how much you need to not get SICK. That is a HUGE difference. Would you rather be healthy or just not be sick?? Let us help you get on the path to wellness and clear up the confusion about what is truly healthy and how to best get there.

Here is what some research has to say about eating well:

"Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), specifically the n-3 and n-6 [omega 3 and omega 6] series, play a key role in the progression or prevention of human diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, neurological and heart disease, mainly by affecting cellular membrane lipid composition, metabolism, signal-transduction pathways, and by direct control of genetic expression."


Ntambi JM, Bene H. Polyunsaturated fatty acid regulation of gene expression. J Mol Neurosci. 2001 Apri-Jun; 16(2-3): 273-278; discussion 279-284.

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"Accumulating evidence suggests that this mismatch between our modern diet and lifestyle and our Paleolithic genome is playing a substantial role in the ongoing epidemics of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and atherosclerotic heart disease."

O'Keefe, JH & Cordain, L. Cardiovascular diseases resulting from a diet and lifestyle at odds with our Paleolithic genome: how to become a 21st-century hunter-gatherer. 2004 Mayo Clin Proc. Jan; 79 (1): 101-108.

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"PUFAs also have dramatic effects on gene expression by regulating the activity or abundance of four families of transcription factor.....These transcription factors play a major role in hepatic carbohydrate, fatty acid, triglyceride, cholesterol and bile acid metabolism."

Jump DB. Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and regulation of gene transcription. Curr Opin Lipidol. 2002 Apr; 13(2): 155-164.