Many parents hope that their children will win at the starting line. Where is the starting line? If life is a marathon, the starting line should be the moment when life begins, that is, when the egg and sperm combine. To make children smart, most people know that future mothers should have adequate nutrition and rest before and during pregnancy. And that children should be well cared for after birth and grow up in an environment full of love and security. But one thing that is often overlooked is that the father should be mentally healthy before conception.
Why does the father’s mental health affect the brain function of the next generation? Intelligence and other brain functions are affected by genetics, and genetic information is recorded in DNA sequencing. Genes are like a cookie mold, and DNA sequencing is like the shape and pattern of the cookie mold. The pattern of the cookies after baking is shaped from this. However, genetic content does not completely determine biological representation, because not every inherited gene will be expressed and shown appropriately. This is the “epigenetic” effect.
Male long-term stress affects genetics
The situation is just like whether a cookie can fully reflect the pattern of the cookie mold, which depends very much on whether the cookie maker can use appropriate materials and techniques. Gene expression is greatly affected by the external environment. More and more medical studies have found that long-term mental stress in men can affect the expression of some genes in sperm (but the sequence of DNA remains unchanged). The result is a change in the physiological functions of the child’s brain, including stress response and serotonin transmission, manifesting in the child’s emotions and behavior.
There is nothing wrong with wanting your children to win at the starting line, but the mistake often is misunderstanding what winning means. When a child’s brain and body parts grow healthily, a human’s innate learning ability, curiosity, and heart to love and be loved will naturally form, leading to excellence in intelligence, moral character, social interaction, and other aspects.
Written by: Dr. William Chui
Originally posted on: HKEJ website
Translated by: Cheuk Long Chan
