I'm not a science student - I actually don't know very much about science. Although science itself fascinates me more than other topics. So this isn't a serious hypothesis - just one I came up with using facts I learned in Biology to help explain disease, tumors, etc... and thought I'd run it by intelligent science minds to see if you guys thought "maybe" it was possible.
I learned in my college biology class several years ago (I don't remember the specifics) that the food we digest is used to create various cells in our body (hence the saying "you are what you eat"). If this is the case then is it possible that bad food we eat (such as food that doesn't have the essential vitamins we need, un-sanitized food, junk food, etc...) could cause "weak" cells in our DNA that can get passed on from generation to generation? Is it possible that these weak cells could cause problems with our DNA that could develop, over generations, into tumors, viruses, disorders, etc...? Just curious.
2007-02-16 08:48:50 · 8 answers · asked by Bluefast 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
It's an interesting hypothesis, and there is a grain of truth in it.
The main thing to understand is that the only DNA that gets passed on to offspring, is the DNA in the sperm cell or egg cell that makes that offspring. We know that bad food can cause mutations in body cells ... i.e. some foods can produce cancer. So it is *remotely* possible that bad food could cause a mutation in a sex cell, so that mutation would gets passed to offspring. But this would be an *extremely* rare event, and would not be a trend that would happen over generations.
I agree with that others are saying. You have a good eye for questions, and hypotheses. There are many, many great popular books on basic biology ... or take a course at a local college ... and you are guaranteed to soak it up like a sponge.
2007-02-16 12:12:34 · answer #1 · answered by secretsauce 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It doesn't really work as simply as that. THings are a lot more complex.
Since you are interested in this, why don't you go to the local community college and take a couple of courses on biology, human anatomy and physiology. You would probably really enjoy it and the Instructor would probably really enjoy having a mature student with a real curiosity about the subject! It would be a win-win situation!
2007-02-16 09:19:42 · answer #2 · answered by matt 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Doesn't sound right to me. Think of your body as a factory making all sorts of widgets (proteins). A person who eats healthy food gets all the different kinds of components that he needs. Someone with a lot of junk food has shortages of some items. So you build less and don't have everything you need.
It's like a house without enough studs to hold up the roof, or missing some insulation on the electrical system. It may look ok, but it will wear out faster and require more expensive repairs.
2007-02-16 08:57:06 · answer #3 · answered by John T 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Your DNA is a code that is passed on to your children. It contains the genetic code that will tell your body how to produce an offspring. It is impossible for a human to change his DNA based on previous experiences or things you can consume. The DNA can not change unless it is mutated, but humans can not control this them selves.
***So the answer is no, what you eat does not lead to changes in your offspring.
2007-02-16 15:15:53 · answer #4 · answered by Bryan B 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would just like to second what Matt said. Your theory may not be on the money, but hell, even thinking about it puts you about a mile ahead of most people.
Take a class, you'll love it. Biology is absolutely fascinating as you get to really apply what you learn to the way you think about everyday activities!
2007-02-16 10:22:55 · answer #5 · answered by Kit 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
no longer particularly. there is no longer something medical about a being more desirable sensible than the universe itself. till you count number technological know-how fiction. Our universe replaced into created by technique of organic ability no longer sensible ability. Does a typhoon strengthen because of intelligence or because the right situations exist for one to type? similar ingredient for the entire universe.
2016-11-03 21:07:03 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only sex cells pass on information from generation to generation.
2007-02-16 11:00:51 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
im not a scientist but i have herd that some specal docters have the abilty to do that
2007-02-16 08:52:59 · answer #8 · answered by madmatt157 1 · 0⤊ 4⤋