Predict future health problems and prevent them from happening? Personalized supplementation for your genes? It's true and it's already happening. UC Berkeley is now involved in genome supplementation research. This program, financed by the US Army and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could pave the way for specialized supplementation depending on your genetic make up.
You might remember that I briefly talked about DARPA a few weeks ago because the agency sinking money into a weak energy drink to give to soldiers for performance enhancement during battle. Future soldiers could hear things like...." Private, don't forget to take extra vitamin C tomorrow,,,,the smoke from the burning oil well can really damage your skin," or "your trigger finger won't cramp up if you take 500mg of magnesium before we attack."(the perfect killing machine) I think you get the idea. It's not even a new idea. The military is always looking for new tactics to increase enemy body count or reduce casualties. British bomber pilots ate bilberries to increase their night vision during World War II and U.S. soldiers grimaced as they enjoyed the protective benefits of the noni fruit during the Pacific campaign against the Japanese.
It's basically, very similar to what BALCO tried to accomplish with the doping or testing of superior athletes. Take an amazing athlete, run a bunch of tests to determine the personal levels of vitamins and minerals, and apply that information to a less fortunate athlete who wants to take their fitness or ability to the next level. For example, if gold medalist, Mary Lou Retton had high levels of zinc and potassium in her body, then my former cheerleader wife could supplement those minerals until they match Mary Lou's profile and go on to medal in "cheering" at the 2012 Olympics. It was a great idea until they started smearing steroid cream on everybody. Now, they're either in jail or under investigation.
My point is...and you've heard it before...everybody is different. Your age, diet, and genes all play a role in the development of disease. I want extra vit C, folic acid and magnesium in my multivitamin, while you may need more zinc or calcium. A "one size fits all" approach doesn't work. ........Matt
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