Distance learning damages genes

“These kids won’t learn anything this way!” everyone raves about online learning. But in reality, this is the least of the problems. Knowledge will catch up with children, but social isolation combined with lack of exercise can have a profound effect on their health. Both can directly affect their genetic information.

We do not yet know exactly what damage social isolation does to our children’s DNA, but scientific research has already mapped out what loneliness can do to animal genes. We can therefore assume that even long-term isolation of children from friends and hobbies will not remain without consequences in this respect, because the psychological stress it entails is really significant for many of them, and the imaginary light at the end of the tunnel is becoming harder and harder to see. In animals, social isolation, especially when combined with contextual uncertainty, has been shown to lead to changes in the methylation of important genes. Methylation is a so-called epigenetic reaction that profoundly affects the activity of individual genes in DNA: if the promoter of a gene (the part of DNA just upstream of the gene) is heavily methylated, the gene becomes virtually invisible to important enzymes. Because of this, he says, proteins stop forming, which is in effect the same as if the gene were not present in the cell at all. In the animals studied, social isolation, psychological stress and insecurity caused changes in methylation in large areas of the brain that can, for example, seriously compromise mental health. Moreover, these changes may not be apparent immediately, but may even occur in adulthood. In addition, some research suggests that these changes in methylation may increase the risk of allergies and asthma.

Stress impairs learning ability and accelerates ageing

Another important area that can be affected by stress-related social isolation is the so-called telomeres. These are the ends of chromosomes that gradually shorten over the course of a lifetime, which is thought to be one of the causes of ageing. For this reason, telomeres have long been studied scientifically, especially in adults. However, it turns out that these tiny formations can be adversely affected as early as childhood, for example in connection with psychological stress. These changes can also have a negative impact in adulthood, both by accelerating the ageing process and by making the body more susceptible to certain serious diseases.

Stress in childhood can even affect intellect and learning ability. It suppresses the production of brain-derived neurotrophy factor (BDNF), a substance that is essential for the growth and differentiation of nerve cells and the formation of neural connections in the brain. While this is most prevalent at the earliest ages (the problem is often found in children who have been isolated from their mothers during infancy), to a lesser extent, the brain’s increased sensitivity to psychosocial stress persists throughout childhood.

From bed to computer and back

Another problem with homeschooling is the critical lack of exercise. Even if a child has very conscious parents who take him or her on regular outings, the level of exercise still drops significantly compared to normal. What is missing is not only sports clubs and school PE, but also natural movement when playing with friends. And even the walk to school is not necessary – it is only a few steps from bed to the computer.

However, a significant loss of exercise not only has a negative effect on musculoskeletal health, but again causes negative epigenetic changes in the child’s DNA. This is doubly true if the child is also gaining weight due to reduced physical activity.

Movement is one of the most important epigenetic factors. For example, when a group of adults who had previously had minimal exercise completed a six-month training program in one study, they experienced significant changes in methylation rates for an average of 7,663 genes! A significant proportion of these genes were ‘brought back to life’ through methylation changes in order to initiate positive changes in physical performance, but a significant proportion of these genes were likely to have improved their overall health and mental performance through their change in activity. Children are generally more sensitive than adults to the effects of all epigenetic factors, and it is therefore reasonable to assume that the changes will be even more pronounced in children.

For example, regular exercise influences the genes responsible for the production of the enzyme APMK, which is responsible for transporting glucose from the blood to the muscles, and increases the sensitivity of tissues to insulin. This translates not only into increased athletic performance as more energy is supplied to the working muscles, but also into lower blood sugar levels, reduced risk of diabetes and weight gain.

Conversely, lack of exercise in children significantly increases the risk of civilisation diseases in adulthood, but it also increases the rate of inflammatory processes in their bodies and impairs brain development and cognitive development. The so-called brain plasticity, i.e. the ability of nerve cells to form new connections (a necessary condition for learning), can be significantly increased by as little as 15 minutes of vigorous exercise a day!

Very dangerous from an epigenetic point of view is the significant weight gain we see in children on online education and without the possibility of organized sports. Indeed, obesity is dangerous at any age because it increases the intensity of inflammatory processes throughout the body and causes negative changes in gene methylation. Together, these two factors significantly increase the risk of a number of serious diseases. However, children are at much greater risk from excess body fat than adults. Obesity is particularly problematic for adolescent boys because adipose tissue ‘absorbs’ testosterone, and reduced levels of this hormone can then impair their development.

3 + 1 principles for physical and mental health

But fortunately for most epigenetic changes, they are largely reversible. If you’re a regular reader of this site, you’ve probably noticed that for virtually all conditions, you’ll find three basic recommendations: eat healthy, exercise regularly, and maintain an optimal weight. This is no coincidence. In fact, these three areas are crucial factors that influence the course of epigenetic reactions in our bodies and thus our physical and mental health. So it will not be significantly different now.

From a nutritional point of view, the main thing to watch is the total intake of carbohydrates, especially those with a high glycaemic index. These significantly increase the course of inflammatory processes in the body and are much more risky than a fatty diet in terms of weight gain. High levels of inflammatory processes in the body not only increase the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, but can also contribute to depression and other mental health problems. (More here: https://www.epivyziva.cz/deprese-v-case-koronaviru-7-epigenetickych-tipu-ktere-udelaji-dobre-nasi-dusi/ and here: https://www.epivyziva.cz/deti-kterym-to-pali-how-to-improve-children’s-health/) As far as exercise is concerned, the younger a child is, the more he/she needs it for his/her successful development – for preschoolers it is several hours a day, but not exercise in the sense of training, but rather spontaneous movement in the context of play.

However, to this trinity we still need to add another important one, and that is psychological well-being. It is true that the emotions we experience also influence the activity of the genes in our DNA. And this is doubly true for children, given their heightened sensitivity to all epigenetic factors. In particular, a mother’s love has an almost miraculous effect – especially in young children, its level can influence not only the child’s physical and mental health in later life, but even his or her intelligence!

One of the most important things we can do for our children is to create a loving and safe, predictable environment for them. The psychological pressures they are currently experiencing are far greater than most of us can imagine, and parental love can help to alleviate them significantly.

Dietary supplements

Although we should try to ensure that children get all the important nutrients from a balanced diet, there are two supplements that are very suitable for children.

The first is omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids, which are essential for the development of the brain and nervous system, and their deficiency significantly increases the course of inflammation in the body. The often-recommended two servings of fish per week is the absolute minimum recommended intake, and even this is not followed by most families. (more here: https://www.epivyziva.cz/omega-3-nenasycene-mastne-kyseliny/)

The latter is vitamin D3, which is not only essential for children’s immunity and bone and tooth development, but its deficiency can contribute to the development of a number of serious diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and autoimmune diseases. Right now, in the pre-spring period, the body’s stores of vitamin A are already depleted, and with less exercise outdoors, replenishing it is certainly worthwhile. (more here: https://www.epivyziva.cz/vitamin-d3/)

Occasionally, it is possible to include the use of rosemary, which greatly supports mental performance and also helps fight allergies. (more here: https://www.epivyziva.cz/rozmaryn-lekarsky/)