What are the new DNA diets
(NOTE: This article was originally published in the India Today issue dated June 16, 2025)In their never-ending quest for healthier foods, along with the holy grail of losing weight, humans in the modern era have taken refuge in dieting trends. Fads like the Mediterranean diet, or the Vegan diet, are everywhere, each involving subtracting or adding a nutrient—no fat, more fat, no sugar, fasting, no carb, more carb, no meat. This approach in recent years has evolved into what is now called 'biohacking'—the mostly DIY practice of using scientific evidence to modify one's lifestyle for better health.advertisementNow, biohacking has taken a far more serious turn from fancy diets, and it emerges from the depths of biological/ medical science. Incredible advancements in genetic diagnostics have opened up a whole new field called nutrigenomics. This discipline focuses on how food interacts with people's genes, how genes affect the body's response to food and thus their health. It also seeks to find new avenues to prevent and treat disease. Nutrigenomics allows for hyperpersonalised biohacking, tailoring nutrition plans based on an individual's genetic profile. A person may thus be advised to avoid dairy because her genes indicate lactose intolerance. Another can be encouraged to eat rice because there is medical proof to show her body uses the cereal better.
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The world of nutrigenomics
The interplay of genes and health outcomes has been theoretically known for over a decade. According to a 2013 study in the journal, Nature Reviews Genetics, nutrients can modulate gene expression—the process by which instructions encoded within a gene are used to create proteins crucial for cell function—through mechanisms like DNA methylation (where methyl groups, a fundamental building block molecule, is added to the DNA, thus altering gene expression). The study of these mechanisms and changes in gene expression through nutrients and medicines—without alterations to the underlying DNA sequence—is called epigenetics. Changes in gene expression influence how genes are read and used by cells, thus affecting biological processes. These changes not only have a bearing on disease susceptibility but also influence the effectiveness of dietary interventions.Over the past decade, advances in DNA sequencing technologies like next-generation sequencing (NGS) and exome sequencing—where protein-coding regions (exons) of a genome is analysed—have improved the accuracy of nutrigenomic testing. These tests assess gene variants that influence the body's response to nutrients, metabolism and susceptibility to diseases. They point out allergies and nutrient deficiencies, and also look at how a body absorbs, metabolises and uses a nutrient. It identifies predispositions to conditions like gluten sensitivity or slower caffeine metabolism, not through allergy markers but through genetic traits. According to market research firm IMARC, the Indian genetic testing market was valued at over $1.8 billion (Rs 15,400 crore) in 2024.advertisementHowever, as Dr Aparna Bhanushali, director, medical genetics, HaystackAnalytics, points out, 'While accuracy at the technical level—meaning the ability to detect genetic variants—is very high, the clinical interpretation of these variants in the context of nutrition is still an emerging area.' The predictive power of nutrigenomic insights can vary depending on the complexity of gene-nutrient interactions and the strength of scientific evidence backing them, she says.Knowing the way the body uses a nutrient through nutrigenomic testing is one part. The other half is using this information for better health. This is done not only by targeted nutrients but also by epigenetic medicine, which targets epigenetic mechanisms to modify gene expression and treat specific diseases.
'Nutrigenomics provides a personalised nutrition model grounded in molecular biology, epigenetics and clinical nutrition,' says Dr Bhanushali. 'For example, variations (also known as polymorphisms) in the FTO gene (a fat mass and obesity-associated gene) are associated with increased obesity risk, while variants in the MTHFR (Methylene Tetrahydrofolate Reductase) gene can impair folate (a nutrient in Vitamin B complex essential to the body) metabolism, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease and neural tube defects.'advertisementAccording to market research firm Grand View Research, the Indian epigenetics market generated a revenue of $479.8 million (Rs 4,150 crore) in 2023. Health tech startup Vieroots, which raised $136,000 (Rs 1.16 crore) in funding this year and is valued at Rs 106 crore, says it provides an EPLIMO (epigenetic lifestyle modification) programme based on a geno-metabolic assessment. EPLIMO can detect multiple genetic variants causing over 250 diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, depression etc. years or decades before they set in, enabling users to change their lifestyles. 'Over 10,000 people have tried EPLIMO. We have seen amazing improvements in their health markers after three months, when we do a blood work. This proves that biohacking is measurable,' says Sajeev Nair, founder and chairman, Vieroots. Nair follows a 'Sajeev diet' plan. 'Once I started following this hyperpersonalised diet plan, I started seeing great results including a stable gut, higher energy levels, proper digestion and better cognitive functions,' says Nair.advertisementFuture of nutritionAccording to experts, relying on the right facts while eating what works for the body is where the future of nutrition lies. 'I see precision nutrition as a step forward,' says Dr Suparna Mukherjee, chief nutritionist at Narayana Health City in Bengaluru. 'We look into an individual's anthropometry (measurement of the physical properties of a body), biochemical markers, clinical symptoms, dietary habits and their genetic reports. We also consider their activity levels and calorie expenditure, which helps us personalise a food plan,' says Dr Mukherjee. It's all about why certain foods work better for individuals based on their unique genetic and lifestyle profiles, she adds.advertisementThe right diagnostic tools can uncover details that make a difference. When 38-year-old Rohit, a fitness enthusiast, went for a genomic health assessment at Haystack Analytics in Bengaluru, he wasn't expecting to uncover anything major. The results changed his approach to health. The test flagged a heightened genetic risk for Graves' disease, an autoimmune condition that affects the thyroid.Nutrigenomic weight loss programmes have become accessible too. When Sahil Malhotra, 41, a software engineer from Bengaluru, wanted to lose 10 kg, he opted for a personalised diet programme by a city clinic which, after procuring his genetic profile through MapMyGenome, was able to tell him why—despite trying multiple diet plans—he was unable to shed weight. 'They found out that I could not digest protein too well, which is why high-protein diets failed as they left less calories for daily requirements, making me constantly hungry,' he says. The results made sense, as his family was originally vegetarian.
While more people are discovering nutrigenomics, most are adherents still of exotic biohacks like mushroom coffee and red light therapy for their nutrition needs. 'Eating certain mushrooms, for instance, can have positive health benefits,' says Dr Siddhant Bhargava, nutritionist, CEO and co-founder, InnerGize, a Delhi-based firm that makes mental health wearables. 'Other biohacks include overloading on caffeine, or foods that improve the body's NAD (a kind of dinucleotide) levels. Nootropics (drugs like creatine and caffeine) can improve cardiac as well as brain performance.' A report by Custom Market Insights, a market research firm, notes that India's health tech market—a fair share of which includes biohacking tools like wearables (such as fitness tracking bands and head-mounted displays) and brain games—is projected to touch $78.4 billion (Rs 6.7 lakh crore) by 2033.However, the results have not always been salutary, as Rohini Bedi, 22, a marketing intern in Mumbai, discovered. On an AI-endorsed diet that involved eating in only two hours a day and weekly ice bath plunges to 'naturally detox the body', Rohini ended up malnourished within a month and had to undergo clinical treatment to recover. 'Individual nutrition needs and health status should take precedence over what is trending on internet search results,' says Bharathi Kumar, dietitian, Fortis Hospital, Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru. Experts are also beginning to express doubts about the efficacy of biohacks. 'Currently, biohacks range from theories to some proven research,' says Dr Bhargava.
Word of cautionWhile there's no denying the power of nutrigenomics, experts advise caution. 'Biohacking diets, when done right, are incredibly empowering,' says nutritionist Khushboo Jain Tibrewala. 'They shift control from healthcare providers to the individual, the one actually living in the body.' But she also feels that nutrigenomic biohacking, no matter how personalised, can sometimes create blind spots. This is where things like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) come in handy. In this instance, they help people understand how their blood sugar responds to different foods. Some epigenetic drugs, on the other hand, while targeting specific diseases, can affect multiple genes, leading to undesirable side-effects on other organ systems.Nutrigenomics and epigenetic drugs are evolving sciences, and experts like Tibrewala say that, ultimately, it is one's own state of health that should be the guide even while on a hyperpersonalised diet directed by genetic mapping. Till the time when our genes give up more of their secrets, the best data continues to be how you are feeling today.Subscribe to India Today Magazine
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