Using DNA Testing to Offer Patients a More Personalized Healthcare Plan

If you look around a crowded room, it’s easy to see that each of us is physically different.

While some people are tall, for instance, others are short. One person may have brown eyes and someone else might have blue or green.

Differences can also exist in our physique (being lean versus being overweight), our musculoskeletal structure, and more. All of these unique physical features are determined by our genes.

What are genes?

The technical definition of a gene is “a specific sequence of nucleotides in DNA [deoxyribonucleic acid] or RNA [ribonucleic acid] that is located usually on a chromosome and that is the functional unit of inheritance controlling the transmission and expression of one or more traits by specifying the structure of a particular polypeptide and especially a protein or controlling the function of other genetic material.”

In simpler terms, genes are the body’s basic biological units that are handed down from one generation to the next and give each person his or her own individual traits.

Because there are so many ways we can differ genetically, it may seem that we are each more different than we are alike. However, once you begin to understand more about genes, you quickly realize that this isn’t the case.

The similarity in human genes

Human beings actually share a large majority of the same genes according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. In fact, while there are approximately 25,000 human genes in total, less than one percent vary from one person to another. It is these 250 genes (or less) that gives each of us our own individual physical structure and appearance.

Over time, we continue to learn more about these genes and the DNA that make up each one. This is thanks, in part, to a few in-depth research studies that have been conducted in this field.

Eye-opening genetic research

One of these studies, the Human Genome Project (HGP), began back in 1990. The purpose of this particular piece of research was to learn more about the approximately three billion DNA letters—known collectively as the genome—that exist within the human body.

The main purpose of the HGP was to gain a better understanding of gene structure and function, both individually and as a whole. Completed in April of 2003, this project provided scientists a clearer image of the human genetic blueprint.

Information gleaned from the HGP is being used in more recent research efforts with a goal to help healthcare practitioners provide more personalized patient care. For instance, the National Institutes of Health is working with multiple research centers in an effort called the Precision Medicine Initiative.

This initiative hopes to take what we know about a specific individual’s genomes and use it to offer more precise treatment remedies. But how can we use genomes to help improve patient health?

The value of genetics and health

Research published in the journal Nursing Management shares that being able to correctly identify a patient’s genome can result in higher quality care that is both safer and offers better outcomes.

Further, recording this type of information in the patient’s electronic heath records (EHR), provides value as well. Especially as technological advancements are made, enabling the software to help analyze the data in a more meaningful way.

Knowing more about a person’s DNA can also help medical doctors assess their patients risk of developing certain conditions and diseases. Chiropractors can use this same type of information to offer patients a more personalized healthcare plan.

For example, if a patient is struggling with hormonal issues, stress, anxiety, or decreased immune function, elevated homocysteine levels may be to blame. A DNA test would show this, enabling you to recommend a product such as Homocysteine TLR to help deplete plasma homocysteine levels and reduce their dangerous metabolic chemicals by increasing enzymes and micronutrients the body needs to convert the homocysteine to glutathione.

Personalization increases efficacy

Since no two patients are the same genetically, what works for one person won’t necessarily work for another. Plus, identifying what a patient may lack genetically enables healthcare providers to make better supplemental recommendations.

For example, in June 2008, researchers from the University of California, Berkeley reported that the enzyme methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) requires folate for it to function effectively. Therefore, if a patient’s genetic makeup shows a variant or mutation of MTHFR, the practitioner can recommend a folate supplement for enhanced physical health.

Knowing a person’s genetic makeup also enables chiropractors to make more effective dietary suggestions. This field of study is known as nutrigenomics and considers how genes interact with and are influenced by the nutrients we consume.

In short, conducting DNA testing makes it possible for healthcare providers to offer patients more personalized plans for improving their health and wellness. It also reduces the frustrations patients typically experience when provided advice that simply doesn’t work for them.

About the Author

Christina DeBusk is a freelance writer who specializes in content related to natural health and wellness, personal development and small-business marketing. She can be contacted through ChristinaMDeBusk.com.