OSF HealthCare leaders say chronic illness has risen sharply across the country, but genetics are not the cause. Dr. Mark Meeker, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for OSF HealthCare, says current research is focused on epigenetics, and how lifestyle and environmental factors are influencing disease risk.
“We have to admit we haven’t had a major genetic drift in 50 years. Our gene pool is the same today as it was in 1960, but chronic disease has exploded. So why is that? There is a whole field of medicine now called epigenetics, which looks at factors in our body that turn on and turn off genes. Are they influenced by diet? Yes. Environment? Yes. Physical activity? Yes. Emotional stress? Yes. All those things have an impact on the epigenetics that turn on and turn off genes, which changes your cancer risk and your chronic disease risk.”
Dr. Meeker says this work is helping the medical community better understand the causes of today’s rise in chronic disease and how to support patients moving forward.
For the full Rural Health Forum with Dr. Meeker, check under news podcasts.
