- The ARC - California Edition -

Food for Preventive Thought

How Many Genes? – For at least a decade, scientists have been estimating that there are between 60,000 and 100,000 genes that make up the human genome. Even though there has been a lot of work performed during recent years to study the makeup of the human genome, it appears that scientists are still far apart as their estimates range between a low of 27,462, and a high of 153,478 genes – average 62,000.

Two sets of scientists, separately and independently, reported in the June 2000 issue of the Nature Genetics that they estimate the actual number will come in between 28,000 and 35,000 genes. Now, the National Human Genome Research Institute has presented their estimate that the gene inventory will fall between 30,000 and 40,000. This may be good news. It probably means that there are fewer human proteins for scientists to understand before the parts list for the human body study is completely documented. 

Pregnancy and Coffee – “Drinking too much coffee during early pregnancy can increase a woman’s chance for miscarriage,” according to a group of Swedish researchers. Their work, reported in the December 21, 2000 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, involved the study of 562 Swedish women who miscarried between their 6th and 12th week of pregnancy. This study group was compared to a group of 953 women who delivered healthy babies. 

Based on this study, the researchers reported that four cups of coffee per day (about 100 milligrams of caffeine) could double the chances of a miscarriage. These findings were adjusted for smoking and symptoms of pregnancy, such as nausea, vomiting, and tiredness. (Caffeine Intake and the Risk of First-Trimester Spontaneous Abortion; Sven Cnattingius et al; NEJM, Volume 343: pages 1839-1845).

Birth Defect Research Fund – Starting with the 1999 year, California taxpayers now have an opportunity to contribute amounts in excess of their tax liability for the support of the Birth Defects Research Fund. In California, there has been a Birth Defects Monitoring Program in place since 1982. This is a State-funded program devoted to finding causes of birth defects. 

During this 18-year period, the BDMP has reported finding that 1 out of every 33 children being born in this state has a serious structural birth defect. The causes for 80% of these birth defects remain unknown, even though program studies have found hazardous waste sites and certain pesticide exposure are linked to some of these serious birth defects. 

A major constraint placed on the program is the funding level. The BDMP has had a static budget since 1992. As a result, there has been a major decrease in the amount of follow-up research into the causes of defect clusters. Remember to donate to the Birth Defect Research Fund at tax time.