If I Were A Scientist

I have this fickle curiosity about how the body works … not because I want to be a doctor or have an interest in science … because I’m fascinated about how long humans have existed, their bodies have adapted and evolved and how little we seem to understand about the inner workings of the human condition.  

The migraines are certainly a driver, my family's history with cancer and dementia and the fact that these are doors I’m interested in bypassing … 

We are taught to seek help when we are sick, get professional advice (read see doctors, trainers to help us get in shape etc.).  While I think this is appropriate and don’t disagree with this as a general rule … I also think we are pre-disposed to ignore our instincts - we live in these bodies, do we know what normal feels like, do we let ourselves feel when something is off or wrong, do we understand the difference, do we tune ourselves out? 

My family history has always raised questions … ok, not always, off and one and more recently on … about the difference in genetics and patterning.

Full disclosure - I am not a scientist.  I actually never liked science in school.  Which is funny, given I’m curious and the idea of proving or disproving ideas is fascinating.  I mean - experiments … hello?  You would think this would have been my calling.  But - no … the stuff we did in school was controlled, the outcomes predictable - crawl before you run … clearly patience and I have never been ideally matched. 

I actually enjoy reading research papers on the study of the brain … I mean, they are dry and I often don’t fully understand what I’m reading, so I have to read them several times and google half the terms … but I find the brain intensely fascinating.  I’d say it’s my one oddity … laughs … but that would be a lie … it’s one of many … sooooo many. 

Human behaviour is endlessly fascinating … like how people can be raised in the same home, and I would have said by the same parents and be totally different … I say “would have” because I heard a podcast earlier in the year where an opinion was shared about parents.  The premise being that siblings are, in fact, not raised by the same parents.  Each child experiences different versions of the parent - they are different ages at the birth of each child, different states of maturity and/or stability, have different life experiences they bring and that’s without the layers of complexity and/or bias they may or may not have related to gender, personality conflicts based on who they are and who their child is trying to be, expectations of roles within the family based on birth order, personal beliefs based on experience, religion, past trauma, expectations surrounding family, education, independent and critical thought etc. etc. 

I mean … how is this not interesting?

Climbing out of this rabbit hole … 

I’m currently investigating (read fascinated by) how learned behaviour impacts or overlaps with health or the intersect between what we have learned about health and our genetic codes.  

Certain things I autopilot … porridge for breakfast - so the types of food we eat or consider healthy.  Nutrition is crazy - it feels like it is constantly changing, impossible to keep up with, contradictory information … So how do you know what’s accurate and what isn’t?  Do our genetics influence how our bodies break down and/or process certain foods which create the appearance of genetic predisposition to certain types of disease?  

Spoiler - I have no idea, but if I were a scientist, this would be my thesis.  I think there is.  I think the patterns and trends we see in families hold data that help with prevention, longevity.  

Here’s the thing … if in my family door one is cancer at about mid seventy to early eighties or door two is dementia in late eighties to early nineties I’d like to choose door three … the one where I am healthy, mobile, strong up until one night, when I say my last goodbyes and meet death in my dreams … to be clear the doors follow a chronological order, so that third door hits in my 100th year … I like round numbers. 

So how do food and lifestyle act as prevention?  My current focus, well in truth, it’s been a focus for a few years - inflammation.  I stumbled up on it when going down a migraine related rabbit hole … teasing it apart has been interesting - like peeling an onion - soooo many layers, some of which even make you cry … smiles

I don’t have the answers … I have some that make sense for me … I am working on others and trying to figure out how to incorporate these new ideas or knowledge into autopilot and sustained behaviours and patterns. 

Hmmmmm …

If I were a scientist …