Food and your genes, the science of nutrigenomics with author Dr Christine Houghton

Dr Christine Houghton holds a PhD in Nutrigenomics and a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Queensland as well as a Graduate Diploma in Human Nutrition from Deakin University in Victoria. She is a registered Nutritionist and Adjunct Lecturer in the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Science at the University of Queensland. Following 3 decades as a private practice Nutritionist, Christine founded the Brisbane company, Cell-Logic which researches and manufactures nutrigenomic ingredients for clinical application. The company’s primary focus is on the research and development of sulforaphane, a broccoli sprout-derived bioactive phytochemical that targets the upstream causes of disease. The company also uses this ingredient to develop evidence-based nutrigenomically-active encapsulated formulations for clinician prescribing. Christine has authored a number of peer-reviewed scientific papers together with “Switched On – Harnessing the Power of Nutrigenomics to Optimise Your Health”, a book she wrote as a way to introduce the complexities of nutrigenomics to patients whose clinicians have prescribed these formulations. She is an engaging speaker whose evidence-supported presentations may challenge accepted but often-outdated paradigms. Christine’s forte lies in taking complex biochemical concepts and translating their essence so that they are relevant to practising clinicians and their patients. Christine is a regular presenter at nutrition, scientific and medical conferences around the world.

Harnessing the Intricacies of the Digestive System
G.E.M.M. has been developed by an experienced clinician in Nutritional Medicine, Dr Christine Houghton after extensive research into the complexities of digestive health and the intricate connections that link the gut to every other system of the body.

An Innovative Approach to Health
G.E.M.M. adopts an innovative approach in its goal to mimic the way Mother Nature restores our health. This is quite different from popular approaches which aggressively target unwanted bacteria and other undesirable gut microbes. By contrast, G.E.M.M. is both gentle and very effective, supporting the inbuilt defence and repair processes within our cells. By understanding Nature’s own inbuilt cellular defence processes, G.E.M.M-accredited clinicians can directly target gut-immune abnormalities. It is these abnormalities that directly lead to the inflammation so typical of gut and immune disorders.

The Power of our ‘Friendly’ Bacteria

What has emerged relatively recently in our understanding is that the ‘friendly’ – or commensal bacteria – and other microbes living in a healthy digestive tract are absolutely essential for the human immune system to function normally. Knowing this has completely changed the way clinicians must focus on treating both digestive and immune-related disorders. These immune disorders include susceptibility to infection, allergy, autoimmunity, food intolerances and generalised inflammation in the gut and throughout the body.

The essential elements of the sciences of Cell Biology, Immunology, Microbiology and Nutrigenomics have been incorporated into an approach that harnesses the inbuilt processes of our cells. As we say, “The science is complex; the implementation is simple.”

Our Focus
As a science-based organisation, Cell-Logic is focused on producing innovative evidence-based nutraceutical and functional food formulations with potent nutrigenomic activity, comprehensively supported by high-quality professional education.

Given that human cells are critically reliant for their function on the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink, it is logical to conclude that human health is highly dependent on the chemical substances to which we are exposed on a day-to-day basis. Fundamental to good health is an appropriate diet, superimposed on other lifestyle factors.

When Nutritional Medicine meets 21st Century Science
As the sciences of both Nutrition and Cell Biology have evolved over recent decades, it has become apparent that certain intervention strategies of the past are being rapidly superseded. With a clearer understanding of just how human cells achieve and maintain homeostasis, we now know that some of the most popular dietary supplements block the essential signals that human cells depend on for their normal function.

Enter the Science of Nutrigenomics
Much of this newer therapeutic approach is directly due to clinical application of the relatively new science of Nutrigenomics, a field in which Cell-Logic is acknowledged as a global leader.

Formulations based on Nutrigenomic Science
Cell-Logic has broadened the application of Nutrigenomics by translating the complexities of the science into clinically-relevant concepts, formulations and therapeutic strategies, tailored to the needs of the practising clinician.

In so doing, our approach is to target the core upstream cellular processes as a means of addressing the primary causes of disease, allowing Nature to take care of the intricacies associated with the downstream pathways.

Cell-Logic’s Gut Ecology & Metabolic Modulation (G.E.M.M.) Protocol is an example of this approach, our translational research providing clinicians with a comprehensive system to address the core upstream biochemical aberrations which underpin disease.