Voted Best Health Book, USA Booknews National Awards. Your genes don't control your health or happiness outcomes; in fact many of the choices you make turn genes on or off. Author Dawson Church applies the insights of the new field of Epigenetics (epi=above, i.e. control above the level of the gene) to healing. Citing 417 scientific studies, he shows how consciousness—in the form of beliefs, altruism, optimism, meditation, emotions, and energy psychology methods like EFT—can trigger the expression of DNA strands. He focuses on a class of genes called Immediate Early Genes or IEGs. These genes turn on within a few seconds of a stimulus. They can be triggered by thoughts or emotions ("I loved that unexpected gift of roses Bill gave me" or "I'm so mad about what Uncle John said at the Christmas party"), as well as spiritual experiences, and acts of kindness. Many IEGs are regulatory genes and turn on other genes that affect specific aspects of our immune system, such as the production of white blood cells that destroy attacking bacteria and viruses. Epigenetics thus influences our health every day.
He coins the new term "Epigenetic Medicine" to describe healing techniques with epigenetic effects. He also summarizes the science behind the infant fields of Energy Psychology and Energy Medicine, both of which offer promising epigenetic medical therapies, and describes examples of the powerful personal breakthroughs being achieved by therapists, doctors, athletes, and entrepreneurs practicing these techniques. The Genie in Your Genes shows that there is a sound theoretical framework, based on credible experiments, for understanding these astonishing results and predicts that the insights of Epigenetic Medicine will dramatically advance the fields of both medicine and psychology in the coming decade.
Best of all, The Genie in Your Genes demonstrates that, by taking control of our consciousness and using it to influence our genetic expression, we can sometimes bypass years of therapy, as well as harmful drugs and invasive surgeries, to, in effect, do continuous genetic engineering on our own bodies. This can produce both immediate relief from long-standing anxieties and neuroses, as well as "miraculous" healing of pain, autoimmune diseases, and other symptoms.
Among a new crop of books that chart the way to a positive health future, The Genie in Your Genes stands out as a scientifically rigorous yet inspiring indicator of a future medicine that links soul to body and mind.
Dawson Church, Ph.D., is the founder of Soul Medicine Institute, has conducted numerous studies in the field of energy medicine, and lectures widely at psychology, medicine, and anti-aging conferences. He set up a network of therapists, the Iraq Vets Stress Project, to make energy psychology available to returning veterans, and through EFT Power Training, instructs sports teams, businesses, and medical offices in the implementation of breakthrough therapies. His other books include Soul Medicine and the forthcoming Your Happy Genes.
