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How Much Of Anxiety Is Genetic? The Right DNA Test Will Tell You

Your genes don’t get the final say on your anxiety…

If you think about it, we live in the most amazing moment in time. We have access to millions of blogs, articles, and books written by credentialed experts on how to feel less anxious, all at our fingertips. 

But even with all of that, a lot of us are still in the dark when addressing things like mood swings, irritability, and anxiety. 

Here’s the REAL problem.

The internet is a great tool – but when it comes to anxiety, you won’t find much in terms of “science-backed” advice. Even conventional approaches only address the symptoms, without looking at a person’s health as a whole.

I’m not here to sell you on a magic “cure” for anxiety. That’s because one singular “cure” doesn’t exist. Everyone is unique, and what works for me, may not work for you. The differences in how we manage stress and anxiety go deeper, down to our DNA. 

DNA and anxiety

First and foremost, let me explain the connection between anxiety and our genes in more detail. 

For many, anxiety is thought of as something that “runs in the family”, which is actually partly true. About 30-67% of the differences in people’s chances of getting anxiety can be attributed to genetics, so if your mom has anxiety, it’s possible that you could develop it as well. 

Therefore, it’s no surprise that companies started analyzing people’s DNA to find out exactly which genetic variants may be predisposing them to develop anxiety and more. 

But not every DNA test is created equal. In fact, for many of them, you may be better off just Googling “How to improve my anxiety” and get your advice from a blog that states “Do your best” as one of their top anxiety-busting tips. 

Let me be clear by saying that not ALL DNA companies are this way. Some of them are actually pretty accurate nowadays, and they give you a lot of information that you wouldn’t have known had you not taken a DNA test.

The reason why it’s important to do your research before you choose a DNA test for anxiety is that many of these DNA companies focus most of their budget on marketing – and science comes last. 

Although some may have pretty advanced methods of analyzing DNA, their health recommendations are not personalized to each individual, effectively canceling out the DNA test in the first place.

But hey, at least you know where some of your ancestors originated from, right?

Your genes don’t get the final say.

For most of my life, I was sick. I was anxious. I didn’t know how to manage my stress, among other things. I asked for help, but the solutions from doctors, specialists, and health gurus never worked for me. After years of trying, I almost gave up hope. 

But once I discovered that my genes predisposed me to a slew of health issues including anxiety, I also discovered that there were ways to offset this by changing my diet, lifestyle, and supplement regimen based on my unique DNA.

So yes, genetics may predispose you to develop anxiety, but your environment, stress levels, lifestyle, even your diet play a part, too.

Here are just some of the genetic variants associated with anxiety, and what changes you can make to offset them:

GABRG2 gene variant

This variant is associated with anxiety. It suppresses GABA, a neurotransmitter that calms the mind. Supplementing with purple passionflower may help increase GABA levels to offset this.

BDNF gene variant

BDNF is a crucial brain chemical, and this variant may reduce BDNF levels. Some people who have anxiety have lower BDNF levels, and relaxation techniques like yoga may improve mood and reduce stress by boosting BDNF levels.

FAAH gene variant

This genetic variant is also linked to anxiety. It likely increases FAAH, an enzyme that reduces cannabinoid levels. CBD may help by inhibiting FAAH.

This is just a small part of what DNA tells us about our health – and SelfDecode’s Anxiety report analyzes over 800,000 genetic variants alone! Your health recommendations are unique too – because they are made based on your DNA.

Anxiety Report

Most DNA companies analyze only a handful of the most common genetic variants and then provide a generalized list of health recommendations that work for “most” people.

And you know what? That’s just not good enough. 

Science ALWAYS comes first for SelfDecode. We’re now analyzing over 83 MILLION genetic variants in total, while other companies are still under 1 million or less. 

For each DNA report, we’re analyzing an average of almost a million or more variants, while our competitors (pictured below) are stopping at 1 or 2 of the most common genetic variants associated with any given health condition.

The whole idea of using your DNA to improve your health should be based on the FULLEST picture of your health possible. You simply can’t get that by only looking at one or two genes – it’s as useful as reading the first page of a book and writing a synopsis based on that one page alone. 

How is SelfDecode different from the others?

Because what we’re doing is difficult and expensive. 

It’s a real science and engineering feat to build the most advanced DNA analysis tool and provide personalized health recommendations based on the user’s DNA.

It takes some really smart, talented (and expensive) people to do that. 

In order to give you the most accurate results and personalized recommendations based on your genes, we’re using the latest techniques in AI, including deep learning, bayesian machine learning, and hyperdimensional computing for genetic imputation and our genetic models.

So, while everyone else is taking the easy way out to make an extra dollar off of consumers that aren’t able to confirm how accurate the reports really are…

We’ll be over here providing REAL personalized health. 

Can you conquer anxiety with genetics?

If you’re serious about improving your health starting with conquering anxiety, there are a lot of different ways to address it with today’s technology. We have a wealth of information in the palm of our hands – the trick is to start by researching the right things.

My health journey began when I started looking at my DNA, and only then was I able to find the root cause of my anxiety. If I had known what was right for my body from the beginning, I probably would’ve saved a lot of time spent being sick, anxious, and stressed.

You can find out if your genes are predisposing you to anxiety with your own personalized DNA Anxiety Report by clicking here. See you on the other side!

Fear & Anxiety: 3 Genes To Look At

What if you could go through life without fear and anxiety?

How would your life look?

Oftentimes, these feelings seep into every aspect of your life and stop you in your tracks.

But did you know that this feeling fear and anxiety are a result of biochemical changes?

Not only that, but there’s many different genes and biological sources that create and make it worse.

When I was suffering from anxiety and depression, I would use Dr. Google and come across so many articles on how to “fix your anxiety” and I would literally try them all.

I was taking lemon balm, chamomile, passionflower and theanine because they were some of the best supplements for anxiety – but they didn’t help me at all.

You name it, I tried it (and wasted tons of money doing so.) I would literally have to take every single supplement I could get my hands on, but even then it wasn’t always clear what was working and what wasn’t. Sometimes you have to take them for an extended period of time to see if something works.

Anxiety response is affected by so many things, like oxytocin, GABA, BDNF, glutamate, serotonin, and cortisol.

So how do you discover what you’re susceptible to?

The answer lies in your genes.

It wasn’t until I started looking at my genes that my life completely changed. I managed to pinpoint exactly what my body needed, and found the supplements that effectively worked on me. My anxiety completely went away, and this process helped me save money as well.

Not only did this work for me, but I use the same approach to help my partners and friends.

By looking at your genes, you can discover diet, supplement, and lifestyle changes that can decrease your anxiety, improve your mood, and completely change your life.

Oxytocin, OXTR Gene and Your Amygdala

When you feel threatened and afraid, a part of your brain – called the amygdala – automatically activates the fight-or-flight response. Oxytocin (or the love hormone) decreases the sensitivity your amygdala has to signs of threat.

If you carry the negative variant of the OXTR gene, your oxytocin levels will decrease. This means you will be more sensitive to smaller “signs of threat,” which can cause anxiety to occur on things like a short social interaction.

If you do carry the negative variant, there’s a specific natural, plant supplement that can increase your OXTR gene activity, improve your oxytocin, and decrease your anxiety!

PITX2 Gene and GABA

The PITX2 gene enables the production of GABA, which is an extremely important neurotransmitter that produces a calming effect when it attaches to proteins in your brain.

The negative variant actually decreases GABA production, which is a hallmark in plenty of different anxiety disorders.

There’s a specific tea that targets the bad gene variant by helping to balance the GABA levels in your brain.

BDNF Gene and Cortisol

The BDNF gene creates BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor), which prevents the excess release of the stress hormone cortisol.

The bad variant of this gene actually has a number of negative effects. Decreased BDNF causes an increase in cortisol, which results in higher anxiety levels. On top of that, excess cortisol damages the hippocampus, which results in more stress-related hormones running rampant in the brain.

That’s why it’s extremely important to understand what variant you carry, so that you can implement changes that will counteract any negative effects.

How To Check All Of Your Anxiety Genes

We often neglect taking care of our mental health. But If you haven’t made it a priority, now is the perfect time.

With our scientific research, genetic data, and AI technology, there’s an easy way to check ALL of the genes related to your anxiety, and find out what the most important changes are for your body.

With the SelfDecode Anxiety DNA report, we look at the 3 genes listed above, along with over 800,000 genetic variants related to anxiety.

Plus, it’s so easy to start seeing results right away. We give you a prioritized list of personalized diet, lifestyle, and supplement recommendations that will work better than anything else you’ve tried because they’re based on your body.

These aren’t generic recommendations, they are specific to your genes.

AUTHOR: Joe Cohen, SelfDecode CEO

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