Do Environmental changes affect the Human DNA? Here’s all we know

By now, we know that the environment can also have an effect on us. The recent studies have revealed that the environment can have a direct affect on our DNA. To clarify, it is not our DNA gene sequences that are affected by our environment, but our gene expression. Gene expression refers to the way genes function, not the way genes are. DNA is the hardware, gene expression is the software that decides how that hardware operates, and the environment can affect the way that software programming works.

Gene expression can be altered by several environmental factors including food, drugs, or exposure to toxins or pollutants. These changes can be slight and might not have any noticeable effects, but they can also be dramatic. The gene expression is altered immensely, certain important genes within our DNA could be turned on or off at times when they are supposed to be the opposite way.

Gene expression is controlled by chemical switches called methyl groups within the genes themselves. If methyl groups are added, a gene turns off, if they are taken away, and demethylate, the gene is then turned on. This on and off action can effect the way our bodily functions react and cause negative effects on our health. Our bodies are affected by a number of external environmental factors. Pollution tends to have the most obvious and severe negative effects, but other factors can affect our DNA and gene expression, which, in turn, affect our hormones and metabolic processes.

Environmental factors affect animals as easily as they do humans. Certain breeds of Himalayan rabbits can experience changes in fur, skin, and eye pigments when temperatures warm or cool. These changes can happen in individuals and across generations if temperatures remain constant.

The world we live in has a very serious affect on our genetic development. As things get colder or hotter, species like ourselves are going to have to physically adapt to those changes. Those changes could affect the way we reproduce, the way we look, or the way our bodies work.