Not only does DNA control physical characteristics like height, but it also shapes how our bodies react to food. Is it true that you are what you eat?
Our DNA determines many of our physical characteristics, from the colour of our eyes to the size of our feet. In recent years, we also discovered that it controls how our body responds to certain foods – a pioneering field of study that has shone a light on why some people are more predisposed to digestive conditions than others.
Dr. Vimal Karani’s work sits at the intersection of food and science. In this fascinating talk he will give us a glimpse into the world of 'precision nutrition' and explore how the genes in our body dictate our relationship and response to food, providing fresh insight into why we eat the foods we do and how we can adapt our diets to fit our specific nutritional needs.
Read this talk's transcript50 minutes
30 minute talk
20 minute Member Q&A
Vimal Karani is a professor in Nutrigenetics and Nutrigenomics, as well as the deputy director of the Institute of Food, Nutrition and Health at the University of Reading. He researches areas related to nutrigenetics and non-communicable diseases.
How do our genes control our response to what we eat?
Not even our closest primate relatives think about food in the way humans do. What does the food we eat tell us about our own evolutionary history?
Not only does DNA control physical characteristics like height, but it also shapes how our bodies react to food. Is it true that you are what you eat?
Old cookery books can tell us a lot more than just how to cook a meal. What do they reveal about topics as diverse as access to technology and the concept of truth?
1 in 15 people globally has a food allergy - a rate that's more than doubled since 1960. What's behind this soaring increase?
Besides taste, there are other senses at work when we eat. How much of an influence does the environment have over our food behaviour?