Article from the series “Perspectives on Personalized Health”
In the previous article in this series, we analyzed how the main obstacle hindering the implementation of genomic medicine in primary care and prevention is the lack of financial and human resources needed to “turn the tables.” In other words, healthcare systems are so focused on treating disease that there are no resources left to implement effective new prevention policies or to train healthcare professionals in new personalized health approaches.
In this article, we will explore how molecular techniques such as DNA tests can be used not only for the diagnosis and treatment of disease, but also for caring for the health of the general population, as well as the challenges this entails.
Personalized health: understanding health and disease
A few decades ago, we understood health as the absence of disease. If nothing hurt, we assumed we were healthy. However, for generations that came after the baby boom, this is no longer the case.
Feeling well today does not necessarily mean being healthy. Certain modern lifestyle habits such as fast food, constant stress, or physical inactivity, among others, harm our health—even if their effects may not manifest, hopefully, until many years later.
Treating a disease is relatively straightforward: symptoms are identified, a diagnosis is made using differential protocols, and a treatment is proposed to eliminate or mitigate the disease’s impact. This approach may lead us to believe there is a “magic solution” for everything: why take care of myself if, when I get sick, I can just take a pill and get better?
As we saw in the previous article—illustrated by the COVID-19 pandemic—this approach is neither the best for individual well-being nor sustainable for the system in the long term. It is therefore no surprise that we are becoming increasingly aware of what it truly means to “be healthy.”
Avoiding reductionism in health care
While a specific disease can indeed be reduced to a defined set of factors (for example, trisomy of chromosome 21 in Down syndrome), our overall health status cannot be assessed using a single variable. The human body is an extremely complex biological system, and we cannot attribute everything to one single cause—whether internal, such as genetics, or external, such as diet.
Like any complex system, our biology can be modeled and measured, but obtaining a complete picture requires a more sophisticated approach. There are no shortcuts or magic formulas—only a great deal of science to understand and process. It is in fields such as bioinformatics and systems biology that we find answers to complex questions that require multiple variables to be effective.
For example, we may want to lose weight in preparation for beach season, but simply “eating less” is not enough. Healthcare professionals, nutritionists, and dietitians continually warn about the low effectiveness—or even the danger that so-called “miracle diets” pose to our health.
Of course, it is possible to lose weight very quickly with these diets, but their overall effect on the body is worse than not following them at all. And this is not only about the so-called “rebound effect,” but also about the fact that abruptly eliminating multiple nutrients from our diet can disrupt our metabolic and endocrine systems, leading to health consequences far more concerning than mild excess weight.
Health studies and nutrigenomics
In contrast, nutrigenomic diets—combined with monitoring biochemical markers through blood testing—allow us to adjust our eating habits by modifying food groups (for example, macronutrients such as carbohydrates or fats) that our bodies may metabolize poorly. This enables us to achieve long-term, sustainable goals without going hungry or changing our social habits or lifestyle.
However, it is essential to understand that what works for one person may be harmful to another, and that the only way to measure these individual differences is through objective molecular data.
Molecular studies in the service of personalized health
As we saw in the first chapter of this article series, in medical disciplines such as oncology, molecular analysis of cancer is already a routine technique for the new generation of personalized precision treatments. But could we apply these same techniques to health care?
The answer is yes. We can use molecular techniques and tests to obtain objective, measurable data that allow us to assess and understand our current health status. We can even correct deviations or improve certain lifestyle habits that positively impact our future health. In this way, we not only improve our current health and well-being, but also reduce the likelihood of disease, enhance our physical capabilities, and optimize the aging process.
This will not allow us to avoid disease 100%, but it will help us do everything possible to reduce its impact. Because let’s be honest—no one likes worrying about a certain probability of developing a disease in the future that may or may not happen, but everyone enjoys feeling well every day.
And this is the key difference between personalized or precision medicine, which focuses on treating us when we are sick, and personalized health, which aims to prevent illness and optimize our health on a daily basis.
