Tell my children or not?

[hairyfairy]

Having the apoe4 alelle is bad enough, but according to 23and me, I have 3 other predispositions for hoeeible diseases.

[JudyH]

Honestly, it tells me the same thing. But I am 58, still reasonably healthy and active and beating the odds and I am going to continue to do so as long as I can!

[circular]

Having the apoe4 alelle is bad enough, but according to 23and me, I have 3 other predispositions for hoeeible diseases.

Learn all you can about genetics and genomics and you'll see that it helps to understand how complex it all is. One bit of SNP information doesn't always say much at the individual level. There's a real downside to getting bits of information without context, the hair trigger worry so many of us have.

[Tardebigge]

You don't say how old your children are. I have a son who is 40. I share all my health info with him so he can anticipate what might happen with my health (and with his). Young children should not be told until they are old enough, in your view, to understand and absorb the information.

[Fc1345linville]

Gemmj has recently posted a new subject: "APOE 4/4 4x increase in mortality from Covid-19".

As I read the report from the referenced study, it made me think, again, about the question of whether we tell our children or not. If the UK study is good science, it seems to considerably weaken one argument for NOT telling our children: since there are still no cures for Alzheimer's Disease, why worry your kids about our bad genes?

But now, in this new study, we are being told that 4/4s have 4x the mortality rate from Covid19 as non 4/4s. And many people younger than 60 think they are much less likely to get the virus, or die from it, than their elders, and they behave accordingly.

So, those of us who are 4/4 and have not yet told our children who have not been tested, have yet another very important argument, for "telling", to consider.

[Julie G]

So, those of us who are 4/4 and have not yet told our children who have not been tested, have yet another very important argument, for "telling", to consider.

Agree, FC. From everything I've read, our genotype is at higher risk for COVID-19- especially when NOT controlling for risk factors. Ethically, this is a very compelling reason to let our children know. Interestingly, those same risk factors (a sedentary lifestyle, obesity, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, heart disease, etc.) also put us as higher risk for Alzheimer's, further strengthening the case for telling. We may not have a "cure", but we have identified risk factors that can be controlled.

[circular]

We may not have a "cure", but we have identified risk factors that can be controlled.

And it doesn't take that long in many who apply themselves wholeheartedly. My understanding is that metabolic disease can be turned around in a matter of months, long before we expect to see a vaccine and/or solidly evidence-based treatments.

[Tincup]

My understanding is that metabolic disease can be turned around in a matter of months, long before we expect to see a vaccine and/or solidly evidence-based treatments.ly themselves wholeheartedly.

Ron Rosedale MD suggested it could be turned around even faster. In my opinion, with targeted fasting, you can turn it around very fast.

[SusanJ]

While I wouldn't recommend the bariatric surgery option, this one shows Type 2 Diabetes can be reversed in a week on a hypo caloric diet.

To test this hypothesis, a group of people with type 2 diabetes were studied before and during a 600 kcal/day diet (21). Within 7 days, liver fat decreased by 30%, becoming similar to that of the control group, and hepatic insulin sensitivity normalized (Fig. 2). The close association between liver fat content and hepatic glucose production had previously been established (20,22,23). Plasma glucose normalized by day 7 of the diet.

https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/36/4/1047

[Tincup]

While I wouldn't recommend the bariatric surgery option, this one shows Type 2 Diabetes can be reversed in a week on a hypo caloric diet.

To test this hypothesis, a group of people with type 2 diabetes were studied before and during a 600 kcal/day diet (21). Within 7 days, liver fat decreased by 30%, becoming similar to that of the control group, and hepatic insulin sensitivity normalized (Fig. 2). The close association between liver fat content and hepatic glucose production had previously been established (20,22,23). Plasma glucose normalized by day 7 of the diet.

https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/36/4/1047

Yep, Roy Taylor (author of paper in Susan's link) and the Newcastle MRI Centre have done a lot of work in this area. Roy has written a book. Jason Fung's group has done a lot of work in the area, too. Jason has many books and they will consult and hold your hand, too.