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Good News In Our DNA: Defects You Can Fix With Vitamins And Minerals

As the cost of sequencing a single human genome drops rapidly, with one company predicting a price of $100 per person in five years, soon the only reason not to look at your "personal genome" will be fear of what bad news lies in your genes.

University of California, Berkeley, scientists, however, have found a welcome reason to delve into your genetic heritage: to find the slight genetic flaws that can be fixed with remedies as simple as vitamin or mineral supplements.

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Scientists look at how personalized nutrition could change how and what we eat

Deep in each person's genetic code may lie the answers to which medicines can help them, which environmental toxins can kill them, and even which foods they should eat to live well.

The tantalizing prospect of personally tailored diets, dictated by our genetic makeup, drew hundreds of scientists and dietitians from around the world to UC Davis over the weekend for a conference on nutritional genomics.

The fast-growing field "will be huge," said Jim Kaput, who next month will take over as head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's division of personalized nutrition and medicine. "We are definitely not ready for it."

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