Epigenetics - The Medicine Nobody Told You About

In this episode, I talk about stress not as a vague feeling, but as biology.
I describe three different stress patterns I have seen again and again: the high-functioning achiever who cannot feel the cost, the person who switches off but never truly resets, and the person whose nervous system is fragmented by constant demand.
The chemistry may overlap - cortisol, adrenaline, inflammation, sleep disruption, neurotransmitter depletion, immune effects - but the way stress enters the body is not the same for everyone. This episode is about recognizing the pattern before trying to fix it.
 
Sources
Herman, J. P. et al. - Regulation of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenocortical Stress Responsehttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4867107/
Knezevic, E. et al. - The Role of Cortisol in Chronic Stress, Neurodegenerative Diseases, and Psychological Disordershttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10706127/
Cleveland Clinic - HPA Axis: What It Is and How It Workshttps://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-hpa-axis
Palma-Gudiel, H. et al. - Stress-Induced Epigenetic Changes in Humanshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6971665/
 
 
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Website: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.com
Instagram: @alter._health
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In this episode, I take you through one night of sleep, hour by hour.
I talk about sleep as one of the most active biological states of the body: a time for memory consolidation, hormonal regulation, immune recalibration, glymphatic clearance, mitochondrial recovery, oxidative stress repair, and cellular maintenance.
My aim is to move sleep out of the category of “rest” and into the category of essential biological work. Losing sleep is not only about being tired the next day. It changes what the body is able to repair, clear, regulate, and rebuild.
 
Downloadable Document
A supporting document for this episode is available here: The Sleep Audit
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
Sources
Matthew Walker - Why We Sleephttps://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Why-We-Sleep/Matthew-Walker/9781501144325
Reddy, O. C. & van der Werf, Y. D. - The Sleeping Brain: Harnessing the Power of the Glymphatic System Through Lifestyle Choiceshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7698404/
Chong, P. L. H. et al. - Sleep, Cerebrospinal Fluid, and the Glymphatic Systemhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8821419/
Davinelli, S. et al. - Sleep and Oxidative Stress: Current Perspectives on the Role of Sleep in Cellular Homeostasishttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11199221/
Zou, Y. et al. - Nightshift Work Can Induce Oxidative DNA Damage: A Pilot Studyhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10184341/
 
Stay connected:
Website: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.com
Instagram: @alter._health
Email: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com

In this episode, I talk about food not only as fuel, but as information.
I look at how modern food has changed: nutrient density, processing, additives, pesticides, packaging, ultra-processed foods, and the growing evidence that what we eat communicates with metabolism, inflammation, hormones, gut microbes, mitochondria, and gene regulation.
This is not a fear-based episode. It is an inventory. My goal is to help you understand why “eating well” can be more complicated today than it was for previous generations - and why food quality, processing, and context matter.
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
Sources
Lane, M. M. et al. - Ultra-Processed Food Exposure and Adverse Health Outcomes: Umbrella Review of Epidemiological Meta-Analyseshttps://www.bmj.com/content/384/bmj-2023-077310
Chris van Tulleken - Ultra-Processed Peoplehttps://www.penguin.co.uk/books/447284/ultra-processed-people-by-tulleken-chris-van/9781529160222
Davis, D. R., Epp, M. D., & Riordan, H. D. - Changes in USDA Food Composition Data for 43 Garden Crops, 1950 to 1999https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15637215/
Marles, R. J. - Mineral Nutrient Composition of Vegetables, Fruits and Grains: The Context of Reports of Apparent Historical Declineshttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889157516302113
Leslie, H. A. et al. - Discovery and Quantification of Plastic Particle Pollution in Human Bloodhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412022001258
Ragusa, A. et al. - Plasticenta: First Evidence of Microplastics in Human Placentahttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412020322297
Imprint
Dr. Nicola SchmitzEpigenetics CoachAlter HealthInstagram: @alter._healthWebsite: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.comContact: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com

In this episode, I compare three generations of bodies: our grandmothers, our mothers, and us.
I talk about how daily life used to contain continuous, varied, unconscious movement - carrying, walking, lifting, cleaning, climbing, gardening, kneading, bending - and how modern life has removed much of that movement in just a few generations.
I also explain why muscle is not simply a movement tissue. Muscle is metabolically active, hormonally communicative, and deeply connected to inflammation, blood sugar, bone, brain, mitochondria, and longevity. Movement is not only exercise. It is information.
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
Sources
Severinsen, M. C. K. & Pedersen, B. K. - Muscle–Organ Crosstalk: The Emerging Roles of Myokineshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7288608/
Pedersen, B. K. - Muscles and Their Myokineshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2832864/
Henson, J. et al. - Sedentary Behaviour and Disease Riskhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10588158/
Park, J. H. et al. - Sedentary Lifestyle: Overview of Updated Evidence of Potential Health Riskshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7700832/
Lindholm, M. E. et al. - An Integrative Analysis Reveals Coordinated Reprogramming of the Epigenome and the Transcriptome in Human Skeletal Muscle After Traininghttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5580508/
Lee Know - Mitochondria and the Future of Medicinehttps://www.chelseagreen.com/product/mitochondria-and-the-future-of-medicine/
Imprint
Dr. Nicola SchmitzEpigenetics CoachAlter HealthInstagram: @alter._healthWebsite: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.comContact: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com

In this episode, I talk about environmental load - not in a dramatic or moralizing way, but as a practical biological reality.
I explain how small daily exposures can accumulate through air, water, food, dust, cosmetics, plastics, cleaning products, furniture, packaging, cookware, and indoor environments. The question is not whether one single exposure will harm you. The question is what happens when small exposures arrive through multiple pathways, every day, for years.
This episode is about awareness, not perfection. I am not interested in making anyone afraid of modern life. I am interested in helping you identify the few inputs that matter enough to change.
 
Downloadable Document
"Room by room audit" DOWNLOAD HERE
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
Sources
Kahn, L. G. et al. - Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals: Implications for Human Healthhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7437820/
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - PFAS Explainedhttps://www.epa.gov/pfas/pfas-explained
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences - Endocrine Disruptorshttps://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/endocrine
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Volatile Organic Compounds’ Impact on Indoor Air Qualityhttps://www.epa.gov/indoor-air-quality-iaq/volatile-organic-compounds-impact-indoor-air-quality
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention / NIOSH - Benzene: NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazardshttps://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/npgd0049.html
Leslie, H. A. et al. - Discovery and Quantification of Plastic Particle Pollution in Human Bloodhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412022001258
Sharma, R. K. et al. - Impact of Microplastics on Pregnancy and Fetal Development: A Systematic Reviewhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11186737/
Imprint
Dr. Nicola SchmitzEpigenetics CoachAlter HealthInstagram: @alter._healthWebsite: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.comContact: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com

In this episode, I talk about the biological power of relationships.
I look at loneliness, social isolation, belonging, marital conflict, community, and the way our social environment can reach the immune system, inflammatory pathways, wound healing, stress physiology, gene expression, and mortality risk.
This is not an episode with easy answers. Relationships are not like buying a water filter or going to bed earlier. But if we are going to talk honestly about epigenetics, we cannot leave out one of the strongest inputs shaping human biology: whether a person feels connected, safe, seen, and supported.
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
Sources
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. - Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Reviewhttps://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316
Office of the U.S. Surgeon General - Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Communityhttps://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf
Cole, S. W. et al. - Social Regulation of Human Gene Expressionhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3020789/
Cole, S. W. - Social Regulation of Human Gene Expressionhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3786751/
Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K. et al. - Hostile Marital Interactions, Proinflammatory Cytokine Production, and Wound Healinghttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16330726/
Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K. et al. - Hostile Marital Interactions, Proinflammatory Cytokine Production, and Wound Healinghttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/209153
 
Imprint
Dr. Nicola SchmitzEpigenetics CoachAlter HealthInstagram: @alter._healthWebsite: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.comContact: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com

In this final episode of the season, I bring the conversation together.
Over the season, we have looked at genes, methylation, food, sleep, movement, stress, environmental load, relationships, and the invisible biological signals of daily life. In this episode, I offer the one question I want you to carry with you: what is this input asking my body to do?
This is the epigenetic lens. It is not about perfection, blame, or control. It is about seeing health as a continuous conversation between your life and your biology - and learning how to change the conversation where you can.
 
Downloadable Document
"The Epigenetic Lens" DOWNLOAD HERE
 
If you are interested in becoming an Epigenetics Coach yourself, learn about my program here: The Certified Epigenetics Coach Training
 
 
Sources
Feinberg, A. P. - The Key Role of Epigenetics in Human Disease Prevention and Mitigationhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3752894/
Alegría-Torres, J. A., Baccarelli, A., & Bollati, V. - Epigenetics and Lifestylehttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3752894/
Choi, S. W. et al. - Modulation of DNA Methylation by One-Carbon Metabolismhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10375321/
Lane, M. M. et al. - Ultra-Processed Food Exposure and Adverse Health Outcomeshttps://www.bmj.com/content/384/bmj-2023-077310
Severinsen, M. C. K. & Pedersen, B. K. - Muscle–Organ Crosstalk: The Emerging Roles of Myokineshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7288608/
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. - Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Reviewhttps://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316
Office of the U.S. Surgeon General - Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolationhttps://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf
 
Imprint
Dr. Nicola SchmitzEpigenetics CoachAlter HealthInstagram: @alter._healthWebsite: www.dr-nicolaschmitz.comContact: support@reply.dr-nicola-schmitz.com