I was recently interviewed by Tina Benitez of FOX News for a story called “Bipolar Disorder: In the Genes?” The article covers the question of nature or nurture–how much does the genetic vulnerability to bipolar disorder contribute to the onset of the illness versus the contribution from environmental stressors? The article also covers early onset (in childhood) and differences between men and women in how they acquire bipolar disorder.
Dr. Francis McMahon, chief of the Genetics Unit of the Mood Anxiety Disorders Program at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in Bethesda, Maryland, also shares his insights on the nature vs. nurture question.
Genes have almost no impact on whether we will get any illness, physical or mental. But they do predispose us as to what illness we will get if there is some kind of stress in your life that you are unable to handle. Nurture is the basis for success, not genes. It matters more what kind of environment you grew up in and the kind of environment you are living in now. Studies on identical twins show that it is their environment that determines what happens to them later in life. I challenge you to find a family that is immune from heart disease, cancer, diabetes and mental illness. Almost everyone has all of them in their family somewhere. Drug companies want us to believe genes predispose us to all these illnesses because then we are at the mercy of their drugs. There is no money to be made when a person is healthy! It is only by making lifestyle changes that any illness can be beaten, including bipolar disorder!
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