DNA Research, Stress and the Effect on Our Genes (Part III)
Facilitated by Rev. Patrice Joy, MA Holy Fire Reiki II Master Instructor
From How to Reprogram Your DNA for Optimum Health by Adelle LaBree
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Stress is a serious contaminate to the body’s genetic behavior. In fact research studies show stress has been associated with up to 90 percent of all conditions that send people to the doctor’s office including cardiovascular disease, gastro-intestinal problems, obesity, diabetes, infections, immune disorders and cancer. Stress sets up a spiraling pattern that continues to impact future generations. The stress level and life style habits of both parents affect the children they will have. By consciously activating a positive mental state, your body can naturally release ‘feel good’ chemicals hormones and neurotransmitters like oxytocin, dopamine and serotonin. These substances bathe your cells and promote longevity. The body cannot process synthetic prescriptions in the same way as the natural neurotransmitters and so these can have extremely harmful side effects in regard to genetics and organ function.
Signs of stress may be cognitive, emotional, physical, or behavioral. Signs include poor judgment, a general negative outlook with excessive worrying, moodiness, irritability, agitation, inability to relax, feeling lonely, isolated or depressed, acne, aches and pains, diarrhea or constipation, nausea, dizziness, chest pain, rapid heartbeat, eating too much or not enough, sleeping too much or not enough, social withdrawal, procrastination or neglect of responsibilities, increased alcohol, nicotine or drug consumption, and nervous habits such as pacing about, nail-biting, and pains. Stress affects the mind, body and spirit.
A chaotic life of conflict and drama consumed by negativity, fear, insecurity and anger, makes your body deficient in the “feel good” chemicals. The stress hormone called cortisol turns off the healthy hormones. Traumatic occurrences leave a strong negative impression on genetic activity. Research indicates that intense traumatic experiences can be a serious genetic impact creating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It has been proven to be an especially pertinent environmental factor that can negatively affect your overall health. This can be passed on from one generation to another.
Isolation, lack of stimulation and boredom create stress, as well as anxiety and the over stimulation of trauma. Trauma and depression affect genetics that are related to mental function. Dr. Larry Feig, a biochemist at Tufts University has carefully examined a molecular mechanism called long-term potentiation (LTP), a form of neural transmission which is a key factor in memory formation. Researchers found that peaceful environments which were filled with interesting stimuli, social interaction and exercise repaired faulty LTP connections in the genes. Not only did Dr. Feig’s team find that interesting stimuli boosted memory despite genetic disadvantages of low IQ and earlier trauma, but they also found that the improvements to memory could be passed on to future generations.
There are several ways to help your body repair this damage and diminishes the effects of the stressors which create negative gene expression: Positive attitudes and emotions aid the return of optimal genetic epigene behavior. Laughter is one of the most productive activities to relieve stress. Smiling uses less muscles than frowning and releases the happiness neurotransmitter called serotonin. Walking in nature relieves tension throughout the whole body. A gentle face massage and a firm foot massage also relieve tight muscles all over the body. Getting regular sleep is one of the best ways to reduce chronic stress.
Interrupted sleep patterns can create stress which negatively affects gene expression. Researchers have found that unusual sleep patterns such as sleeping during the day or staying up late at night actually alters the activity of your genes. Melatonin is a hormone that affects the capacity to go into deep levels of sound sleep. Light suppresses this production; consequently, more rest is accomplished in a dark, quiet location. In one study conducted at the Sleep Research Center at the University of Surrey in the England, the sleep of subjects was interrupted at regular intervals over a period of three days. Blood tests revealed that the lack of regular nightly sleep caused positive epigene expression to decrease.
This is a problem because your genes carry instructions for making proteins which in turn make up the chemical signals and hormones that regulate your body’s circadian rhythms, metabolism and immunity. It is best to get seven to eight hours of sleep at night to get your genes back on track, as well as boost your metabolism and support weight maintenance. According to a recent poll by the National Sleep foundation, one study showed that a week of sleeping six hours or less a night negatively affects the activity of 711 genes – including those involved in inflammation and the stress response.
Stress is also linked to several serious diseases such as heart disease, cancer, lung disease, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide. It is important to understand how stress can impact; your day-to-day life as well as your long-term health. Here are some ways that chronic stress may affect your physical and mental health.
Brain: Stress can impede your thought processes and hamper your thinking. You may find making simple decisions like what to have for dinner or remembering directions to a restaurant are more difficult than in a non-stressed state.
Emotions: People dealing with chronic stress may be easily frustrated and quick to lose their temper. They may cry more often and spend considerably more time worrying.
Teeth and Gums: Strange as it may seem, stress can take a toll on your oral health. Stress may cause you to clench or grind your teeth. It’s often done unconsciously or during your sleep, but if it’s not treated, it may lead to problems with your jaw bone joints. Stress may also lead to gum disease, loss of teeth, and reduction in saliva which affects digestion and immunity.
Heart: In terms of its effect on the body, stress is dangerous to your heart. Stress hormones speed up your heart rate, constrict blood vessels, and make the heart and blood vessels more likely to overreact in the event of a future stressful event. Stress is also linked to high blood pressure, blood clots and stroke.
Lungs: People with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) often have worsening symptoms during times of chronic stress.
Stomach: Stress may make your stomach uneasy and result in increased incidence of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea Gastrointestinal disorders and diseases like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), ulcerative colitis, and peptic ulcer disease symptoms may be worsened by stress.
Skin: Stress may intensify skin problems such as psoriasis, eczema, herpes, acne, and rosacea. It is also known to bring on cold sores and fever blisters.
Hair: When a person is under a great deal of stress, his or her hair may enter the falling-out stage of the hair life cycle. It can occur up to three months after the stressful event, but hair usually grows back within a year.
Muscles: Stress-related tension in your back, neck, and shoulders can lead to muscle pain throughout your body. Lower back pain is related to a feeling of lack of support.
Immune System: Stress suppresses your immune system, making you more susceptible to infection. Stress can also worsen symptoms of chronic illness such as rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes.
Brain Wave Activity: There are five main recognized brain wave frequencies: High Beta is emotional drama, over-excitement and even hysteria; Beta brain waves occur during normal conversation that is not highly emotionally charged; Alpha is the brain activity during meditation and deep relaxation. (This is where learning and memory take place, as well as body restoration and organ regeneration.) Theta is the brain wave of aesthesia; Delta brain activity is close to a comatose state with minimal organ function. During periods of stress, the brain becomes locked in repetitive cycles of Beta and high Beta.
A lifestyle of more relaxation and down-time lowers stress. Meditation can be used to reprogram your genes to reduce stress. When you are relaxed, the “feel good” neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin are activated reducing the expression of disease-related genes. Lowering your stress also lowers your blood pressure and inflammatory diseases such as arthritis, bursitis and fibromyalgia. The more relaxed brain waves of lowered brain frequency produce a higher more peaceful vibrational rate of brain activity. This also allows epigene behavior to aid in balancing male/female hormones.
The right brain is the area of the brain of creativity and overview. Left brain logic is important in rational brain activity, but generates a higher level of activity. Meditation is one of the means of developing higher vibratory channels of communication with one’s DNA. You can develop a more highly attuned inner process called hypercommunication through the practice of meditation. This can give you the ability to suddenly accesses information outside you own personal knowledge base through intuition or insight while in the alpha brain wave frequency of right brain function.
Dr. Herbert Benson, president of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine and author of The Relaxation Response, compared the genes of people who had regularly practiced meditation to non-meditators. The non-meditators had twice as many active stress related genes. The more stress-related genes that are switched on, the more likely a person is to experience chronic pain, high blood pressure, reduced mental capacity and other serious conditions. Benson and his team found almost 1,000 stress related genes were turned off in the meditators.
In the last phase of the study, the researchers taught the non-meditators to meditate in order to track changes in their genetic behavior. After they had been meditating for eight weeks, the team compared the “before and after” gene profile of each participant. This analysis showed an additional 433 stress-related genes had been turned off. The Selectin E gene, which causes inflammation were also turned off. Blood tests showed that meditation can substantially reshape your genetic expression and that it can do so in a very short time. Studies like Dr. Benson’s could help to explain the numerous reports of recoveries sparked by positive thinking, affirmations, meditation, mindfulness, yoga and other relaxation mind/body techniques.
Dr. Dean Ornish, author of The Spectrum, and his team from Preventative Medicine Research Institute in San Francisco have used relaxation techniques and documented how meditation affects cancer genes. Other tests revealed the RAS gene known to promote cancer was not activated. The SFRP gene that fights tumor formulation was turned on, indicating that meditation was fortifying the patient’s body to battle the cancer cells. Another study using breathing techniques in meditation showed epigenes that boost insulin production and stabilize blood sugar were turned on, as well as those that slow down aging.
Dr. Pjotr Garajev, microbiologist, is conducting research in Russia on the impact of vibration and language on the genetic codes. He is known as the ‘Father of Wave Genetics’ for his work in cloning. His research is leading to breakthroughs in other fields using hypnotherapy, NeuroLinguistic Programming (NLP) and light frequencies to rearrange the behavioral expression of living DNA. The work of Noble Prize winners Dr. Montagnier in “Wave Genetics” helps explain why affirmations and hypnosis which originates below the surface of conscious logic have such important effects on people’s core behavioral habits.
Our DNA is inherently programmed to respond to sound with language. NLP is a therapy that uses words in autosuggestion to replace disruptive experiences held in the cells. The basic premise of NLP is that the words you use reflect your inner, subconscious perception of your problems. If these words and perceptions are inaccurate, as long as you continue to use them and to think of them, the underlying problem will persist. In other words, your attitudes are, in a sense, a self-fulfilling prophecy. Language is a means of accessing repress cellular memories and is also effective in establishing intentions. Verbal intentions act as a magnetic force to draw your desired goals. Rather than worry and focus on what you fear and don’t want, you are encouraged to concentrate on what you do want. Then verbalize aloud what you choose to bring into your life. Affirm: “I chose this or something better.”
Dr. Rossi found that extreme immediate emotional swings into anger lower the vibrational rate and trigger the stress hormone cortisol which turns off other hormone function. The ACTH stress hormones are thrown into the system during rage causing cellular destruction and aging. Understanding the genetic link to anger and violence can bring breakthroughs in behavior management therapy. These encoded biochemical behaviors can be reprogramed through the linguistics of NLP and hypnosis, Vibrational therapies such as Reiki, chanting, tuning forks and other vibrational medicine modalities can also trigger healthy epigene behaviors .
Hypnosis is a non-invasive technique that encourages you to achieve heightened levels of focus and sensation. People who practice hypnosis believe that there are two main components to the mind: the conscious mind and the unconscious mind. Through relaxation and suggestion, you are able to access your subconscious mind and stop behaviors or thoughts that may be contributing to pain or other unpleasant symptoms. Contrary to popular belief, people who are in a state of hypnosis are aware of their actions and will not do anything that they have a serious moral or ethical objection to. In fact, you do have control over your actions as well as what you say while you are hypnotized. Moreover, you have the ability to remember what transpired while you were hypnotized. Self-hypnosis is a type of hypnosis that you can do yourself in the privacy of your own home. You can learn self-hypnosis either from a hypnotherapist or from one of a number of books available on the subject. Self-hypnosis is normally used as a form of relaxation, meditation and pain reduction. Hypnosis has long been used to treat both psychological and physical disorders and to block pain sensations.
The Ancient Egyptians and Chinese used hypnosis to relieve symptoms of pain over two thousand years ago. Hypnosis was also used in the 1800s by medical doctors for anesthetic purposes. Hypnosis has received more attention from the medical field; in fact, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recommended that hypnosis be used as part of a treatment regime for chronic pain. A recent study performed at the University of Iowa researched an explanation of what actually happens to the brain during hypnosis. Brain scans were taken of chronic pain sufferers in hypnotic trances and analyzed for activity changes. Researchers found that people under hypnosis had reduced activity in pain network areas of the brain. In particular, the area of the brain responsible for “feeling” pain had significantly reduced activity levels. This suggests that hypnosis treatment works because it actually has a physical effect on the brain as well as the epigenes. There is a psychological affect and even a placebo effect relating to the person’s level of belief in the process.
Many fibromyalgia sufferers attribute reduction in their symptoms to the power of hypnosis. These sufferers use hypnosis as a way to limit their pain symptoms and increase their energy and comfort levels. A study conducted by the NIH Institute showed that fibromyalgia and individuals suffering pain who used hypnosis reported 80% fewer pain symptoms than those who received no hypnosis treatment. Other reported benefits of hypnosis include decreased muscle pain, decreased fatigue, fewer sleep difficulties and increased relaxation.
Dr. Rossi and his team invented a psychotherapeutic protocol that combines hypnosis, psychotherapy, rehabilitation therapy, meditation and pastoral counseling to redirect repressed anger. Dr.Alfred Bellanti joined the research of Dr. Rossi to confirm what changes are taking place in the patient’s neurotransmitter levels during emotional shifts. This allows the researchers to determine which epigenes have been up-regulated and which have been down-regulated. Along with other associates, Dr. Rossi has published twenty eight books on mind/body connections viewed through the dual lens of Eastern philosophy, neuroscience and therapeutic psychological.
Dr. Emile Coue, the originator of “conscious autosuggestion” has been able to provide help for countless people with the DNA’s natural tendency to respond to language. Dr. Cour relates, “All ideas that we fix upon the mind become a reality”. In other words, holding an idea in our minds has the power to induce us to believe that it is indeed true. He feels by verbalizing that the pain or unwanted thought or feeling as moving away, we actually connect with this outcome in our belief system. He tells his patients to speak rapidly repeating the words ‘ca passe’ (French for “it is going’”). The speed of repeating this is essential to prevent the intrusion of negative thoughts that could conflict with the patient’s intention.
His patients are instructed to repeat a phrase twenty one times each night with the eyes closed at bedtime. This can help individuals initiate and guide their own healing to create desired results through linguistics. Dr. Coue recommends to repeat the following phrase: “Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better”. This affirmation affects the quality of mental, physical, physiological and spiritual health. Affirmations are often used in the field of science to reprogram core beliefs that are chosen by the client. This involves a process of confirming a phrase repeatedly so that the unconscious mind accepts the new information to replace old trauma. It is believed that change takes place through the process of repeating a new behavior or belief twenty one times.
Professor Ernest L. Rossi, PhD, a preeminent figure in clinical psychobiology, used autosuggestion and affirmations to recover from a stroke. In his 2002 book entitled The Psychobiology of Gene Expression, Neuroscience and Neurogenesis in Hypnosis and the Healing Arts, Dr. Rossi explores the practice of utilizing positive experience to facilitate brain growth, (neuroplasty) and brain tissue healing. He draws on the arts, dreams, psychology and hard science disciplines of psychosocial genomics (the study of how we are affected by social relations) and psychoimmunology (the study of how the mind affects the immune system) to see the links between seemingly disconnected areas. His published studies tracing the effects of imagery, relaxation and emotional states on white blood cells and molecules right down to the genetic level. These finding and other worldwide research on the effects of personal lifestyle choices, interactions and stress levels open the door to new possibilities in medical breakthroughs.
Rev. Patrice Joy, MA is a Licensed Minister, Holy Fire Reiki II Master Instructor and Healthy Living Consultant. She conducts weddings and other ceremonies and a variety of Harmonizing Health Wisdom Programs.