Epigenetics and Lifestyle

Abstract

The concept of ‘lifestyle‘ includes different factors such as nutrition, behavior, stress, physical activity, working habits, smoking and alcohol consumption. Increasing evidence shows that environmental and lifestyle factors may influence epigenetic mechanisms, such as DNA methylation, histone acetylation and miRNA expression. It has been identified that several lifestyle factors such as diet, obesity, physical activity, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, environmental pollutants, psychological stress and working on night shifts might modify epigenetic patterns. Most of the studies conducted so far have been centered on DNA methylation, whereas only a few investigations have studied lifestyle factors in relation to histone modifications and miRNAs. This article reviews current evidence indicating that lifestyle factors might affect human health via epigenetic mechanisms.

KEYWORDS::

• DNA methylation
• environmental exposures
• epigenetics
• histone modifications
• lifestyle

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This work was funded by New Investigator funding from the HSPH-NIEHS Center for Environmental Health (ES000002) and Lombardy Region Founding (Effetti sulla salute degli inquinanti aerodispersi in regione Lombardia [ESSIA]). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by New Investigator funding from the HSPH-NIEHS Center for Environmental Health (ES000002) and Lombardy Region Founding (Effetti sulla salute degli inquinanti aerodispersi in regione Lombardia [ESSIA]). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.