November 26, 2024
Episode 207 – Kashif Khan – Unlock the Secrets of Your Genes!
“Picture your DNA as an instruction manual. Every one of your 50 trillion cells encompasses this instruction manual and reads the relevant pages to do jobs it needs to do. If the instruction isn’t written properly the heart cell doesn’t know how to be a proper heart cell, the kidney cell doesn’t know how to do its job, you don’t make hormones properly, you don’t clear toxins properly. So, if I can read the book and I know what pages are missing and what paragraphs are incorrect, what’s misspelled improperly, I know what your body is doing wrong. And I therefore know what I need to add, what I need to delete, and disease becomes optional.” – Kashif Khan
- Kashif Khan is a biotech disruptor, TEDx Speaker, and the bestselling author of, The DNA Way: Unlock the Secrets of Your Genes to Reverse Disease, Slow Aging, and Achieve Optimal Wellness.
- Raised in an immigrant household from Vancouver, Canada, Kashif cultivated an enterprising spirit from an early age. As founder of an international biotech company, he uncovered his genetically predisposed entrepreneurial neural wiring.
- Kashif Khan’s journey to functional genomics hit home while navigating his two sons’ homework challenges, each stemming from distinct genetic factors affecting their motivation and focus. With a few small, individual lifestyle tweaks, the issues were completely circumvented, highlighting the power of personalized approaches, and fueling Kashif’s passion to support more parents in decoding their childrens’ genetic blueprints.
- Between genetic coaching which is revolutionizing “personalized parenting” through DNA testing, and The White Bottle Project, which leverages the latest advancement in functional genomics to offer personalized supplement solutions for children, Kash is pioneering the way for parents to feel empowered and equipped with a roadmap and tools to support their kids to thrive.
- Kashif’s work has been featured in Foundr, ABC News, Well & Good, and on top podcasts like Ben Greenfield Life, Impact Theory Podcast with Tom Bilyeu, and Dave Aspery.
- In this episode, you’ll hear about the fascinating work that Kashif and his team are undertaking, which in a simplistic form can be described as uncovering our instruction manual to better understand our personal software system. Kash talks about his drive behind the pursuit of this work to get underneath the diagnoses and prescriptions to discover the root cause of his illness and those of his family members, to prioritize a lifestyle of optimal health. Patrick and Kash discuss dopamine addiction, and the impact this work has on the early health and wellness of young kids. He explains how things like Alzheimer’s, dementia, autism, depression and auto immune disease do not have to be our predetermined destiny. Listen in to find out where you can access these tools and put responsibility for your health into your own hands. Health is our habits and it is priority not prescription.
- Show Notes
- [00:42] Patrick introduces his next TEDM guest Kashif Khan.
- [02:39] Kashif and Patrick waste no time diving into the complexity of Kashif’s bio as he describes what he and his team are doing with the science and their learnings of DNA to apply it where it’s most needed.
- [05:48] A software glitch? Kashif shares a personal example of what drove him to this work when his own “software glitched” and he needed real answers as to why, not just a diagnosis and prescription.
- [08:18] To get to the bottom of what was going on with his body, Kashif couldn’t rely on the same toolkit used by the medical system for acute care. He started investigating functional medicine to get to the root cause. It was a journey that led to his prescription-free well health.
- [10:33] 90% of this groundbreaking work they do is spent on chronic disease management while 10% is rare genetic conditions and acute care. The the vast majority of chronic diseases we struggle with, are not innate. They are caused by our habits, our environment, nutrition and lifestyle on top of the broken biology. As an example, they are doing substantial studies on Lyme disease to better understand it and the variable outcomes that are happening.
- [13:37] Alzheimer’s and dementia are prevalent topics currently, and Kashif has just completed a masterclass about prevention. Kashif explains the root causes, including inflammation of the brain, the circumstances that can contribute and ways to manage it. It’s a priority not a prescription.
- [19:33] Find the broken code. Kashif advises, don’t wait for what’s “inevitably” coming, get to the root of it. Why is it happening? There is a narrative that says these things such as dementia are part of the aging process. Maybe there are more and bigger questions to ask.
- [25:17] Health is your habits. Patrick shares how he prioritizes his health and manages risk with how he thinks and carries stress, diet and exercise. Kashif reinforces that the same answer for good health isn’t true for everybody. There is an individuality in what works for some and not all.
- [31:17] Kashif provides another example where bio individuality is needed – choosing a vegan diet. For some people they thrive, for others it’s the cause of chronic disease. Why?
- [32:45] So what do we do if we are feeling out of alignment? How do we access these services that Kashif is speaking about? This is a global program; they have clients all over the world. They have made it simple to test your DNA and get your DNA sequence to know what to prioritize. We also have to consider our environment. Kashif outlines the astounding amount of toxins we expose ourselves to every day, in our own homes that can contribute to our dis-ease and which we can rid ourselves of.
- [39:18] Kashif explains that starting early with health, wellness and prevention for young kids was the most impactful place they could apply their work. He shares a personal story of his niece’s struggle and how he used DNA, her hormone cycles plus the low levels of vitamin D due to a mandate followed in 2020-2021 to help her. Context is key. (vitamin D is a hormone not a vitamin).
- [49:37] Dopamine addiction. Kashif discusses the two different encounters people experience with an addiction to dopamine. One, people who structure their day around it, using it as a tool. Two, those who are content and don’t need it, but when they do enter the pleasure loop, they binge.
- [52:45] Kashif shares the story of a man named Charlie Engle with whom he works, who thought he was an addict and had all kinds of issues with drugs. Kashif showed Charlie that he is in fact a “binger” and he now uses his sport as his binge.
- [54:09] Autism in kids – from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 36. Kashif talks about the impediment of behaviour development in kids that share some of the same symptoms as autism, and what can cause these issues. Once again context tells the more accurate story, and Kashif provides a more hopeful outcome.
- [59:50] Kashif explains how their DNA testing works in terms of next steps. There are recommendations built in that some choose to take on individually, but many utilize personalized programs that help them implement the findings and fast track the shift on their biology.
- [61:49] Everything we do every day is a choice to walk towards health or walk away from it.
- [63:51] Socio economic factors play a part in nutrition and contributing positively or negatively to our health. That said, Kashif presents a case for eating nutrient dense food that allows us to give our body what it needs to avoid the need for extraneous and costly supplements.
- [66:27] Patrick recaps how we can take responsibility for our health through the choices we make in food and supplement plus alternative solutions to what we hear in the common narrative. The functional genomic testing that Kashif and his team are providing is a way to support that.
- [68:12] Both Kashif and Patrick reiterate that our health is in most cases, very much our choice and what we decide to prioritize. When our intention behind our decisions is to make health our priority, that becomes addictive. The satisfaction our brain gets from reward, is far more satisfying than pleasure.
- [71:51] Migraine headaches are one of the things that Kashif needed to personally overcome. For ongoing migraines, and most chronic health issues, look at poor gut health because that is commonly the root cause.
- [73:50] To find out more about the work Kashif is doing, including testing, check out the links above which include Kash’s Instagram and website.
- [74:43] Good news! There will be a part 2 for Kashif and The Everyday Millionaire to hear more about Kash’s story and his own health journey.
- [75:52] Kashif’s gratitude.
- Selected links and people mentioned from this episode:
- The DNA Project
- White Bottle Project
- The DNA Way”: Unlock the Secrets of Your Genes to Reverse Disease, Slow Aging and Achieve Optimal Wellness by Kashif Khan
- Dr. Tom O’Bryan
- Tom Bilyeu
- Dr. Fung Stanford University Behavioural Change Lab
- Charlie Engle
- DNA Testing
- Connect with REIN Canada
- REIN Canada
- [email protected]
- REIN Channel
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