We all know that sleep , stress, exercise, and social connection are essential pillars of health. But according to science, one factor in particular acts as the foundation for all the others: “Nutrition is the number one factor, the starting point that underpins the rest,” explains Stanford University epigenetics expert Lucia Aronica , whose research focuses on nutriepigenetics, or the way “food can influence gene expression and how it can turn on or silence certain genes related to aging.”

What is epigenetics?

To understand how our habits influence our genes —and more specifically, how what we eat activates genes that promote cell repair or, on the contrary, accelerate their deterioration—Aronica shares this metaphor: “Think of your genes as the hardware of a computer and epigen

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