Trying to Expose Sham "Nutrigenomics Testing"

Denise Minger published a post about her genetic MTHFR status that convinced me to test mine, but now I'm writing to expose this for scam it is. It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize that there is simply no scientific evidence for the claims on geneticgenie.org, mthfrsupport.com, or any of the other websites that have sprung up around Dr. Yasko's unsupported claims about SNPs and the detox/methylation cycle.  I fell for, and many people are continuing to fall for it.

The idea of correlating individual genetic differences to different nutritional requirements seems scientifically plausible.  But searching Pubmed shows that the claims being made about specific SNPs are not backed up by published scientific research. This scam propagates on plausibility, confusion, and ultimately, apathy.  I was taken in and confused by the veneer of scientific credibility...and when it didn't make sense I assumed I just needed to spend more time on the research.

But there is no research backing up these claims. They can all be traced back to Amy Yasko, who runs a website promoting her personal interpretations and observations.  While she claims not to make any money from sharing her knowledge, she promotes products and testing sold by her husband's company.  Her bibliography appears to include extensive scientific work, but I was unable to locate any of the papers she claims to have published.  She states that she is now "too busy" to publish her results.  I also could not find any confirmation that she is a real doctor (JD or PhD).

The sad truth is that, whether she believes in her own theories or not, this is a classic snake oil supplement gimmick hiding behind a sheen of fake science.  Selling B vitamins as miracle drugs has a long history, because almost everyone feels better with a few B vitamins (that's why they put them in energy drinks).  If you try the more expensive supplements she promotes, you may or may not feel better.  If you do feel better, you're quite likely to promote the gimmick. Most of the people commenting write in to say that they are feeling better, or think that they will when they get their supplement combination dialed in.  If you don't fell better, you might be motivated to try a different high-priced supplement, or you might just give up and stop reading this (or other) blogs.  The result is a huge number of people who appear to have been helped by this approach, and a continuous supply of new customers.

While we all want personally-tailored miracle drugs, maybe the best we can say right now is to eat "whole foods, mostly plants, and not too much"...and skip the overpriced unscientific supplements.

More background on Amy Yasko's nutrigenomics scam.

A brief review of the state of the science for one of Yasko's claims.

My review of the complex problems involved in evaluating Yasko's incomplete metabolic diagrams.

Welcome to the High Desert of New Mexico, USA

Surviving in the High Desert of New Mexico is like visiting another planet.

I suggest you find a house with a good airlock and sunshade, but you won't be able to filter out the cosmic rays; living up here is like being an airline stewardess.

The desert has a way of simplifying human needs: water, oxygen, respect (for the sun), oh, and more water.

The most important thing is water. You have to drink all the time. When you wake up in the morning you must drink a full nalgene; you've lost at least that much through exhalation during the night. I suggest miso bone broth soup to replace the electrolytes as well. Its dry here and you can't always tell when you're sweating because evaporation is so efficient.

Sometimes you can't drink enough water. The answer is coconut water. Always keep some at hand in case of emergencies.

High altitude. One of the commonest complaints (after dehydration, always check that first) is low oxygen. People forget to breathe. You have to really move that diaphragm! Ginseng and other tonifying herbs might help, too. Oh, and bone broth soup. Think like a sherpa.

Sun. I used to go without sunblock, but we're too close to the sun here. Respect the sun. Always wear sunblock when you have exposed skin - or wear a burkha. UV-blocking sunglasses are also, sadly, necessary. I hate wearing glasses, but if you don't the Light will wash away your world. Yes, it is possible to sunburn the back of your eyes.  8-(

Moisturizer. Dry skin is serious. One secret to prevent over-drying is to always end showers with cold water; it tones the muscles and closes pores in the skin so you don't lose all your hard-earned moisture. Never, ever use drying soap. I don't think that should be a problem, but I'm warning you now: Don't let cracks form on your hands or it will be Too Late, and you'll be covered in bandages like a mummy.

 Welcome to New Mexico!

Antinutrient Resources

In general, plant secondary metabolites can have positive and negative effects (Weston A. Price). The reason I don't try to categorically avoid them, but treat them with caution, is that these effects are multiplicitious and biological: very hard to predict what they will do, good or bad...

However, unless we know about the problems with antinutrients, we won't know why eating raw flour or dough is dangerous, why green potatoes are toxic, or how many raw red kidney beans it takes to kill a man (not very many).

But on the whole, unless you are allergic, most antinutrients will be digested, and some are actually good for you. For example, this article mentions that inositol hexaphosphate is a break-down product of phytic acid. Most phytic acid is broken down by digestion, and there is evidence that it can have beneficial effects as well as deleterious effects.

This article points out that most sweet potato antinutrients are destroyed by baking, as opposed to boiling. This FAO article on all the major food crops and their antinutrients specifies that " Heating to 90°C for several minutes inactivates trypsin inhibitors", which explains why baked sweet potatoes are nontoxic. (But the article also points out that diseased or moldy sweet potatoes may have toxins that are not completely deactivated by cooking ....moldy vegetables should not be consumed. Apparently, toxins in normal potatoes are also not destroyed by normal cooking methods. Furthermore, sweet potatoes do not have lectins, but normal potatoes do. These compounds can have some antidigestive effects, but most should be destroyed by cooking.

Antinutrients are important, but I think methionine and nutrient density / glycemic index considerations are more important overall. A few potatoes or slices of bread shouldn't hurt most people, but if you have the luxury of chooses less toxic plant products, sweet potatoes and especially squash and pumpkins are some of the best sources of nutrients, with the least amount of antinutrients.