According to a new global survey, older adults in the United States take more drugs for more chronic health problems than seniors in ten other countries. Why do so many people suffer with chronic illnesses as they age?

The diseases that afflict them are due in part to genetic susceptibility for heart disease, diabetes or Alzheimer’s disease. We can’t change our genes, but what if we could program them to behave differently?

According to Dr. Jeffrey Bland, that is exactly what we are doing every time we eat dinner or go for a walk. He explains how we can put the emerging science of epigenetics to work for us to control the causes of chronic disease. What are the simple steps we can take to boost our health span and enjoy life to the fullest?

Jeffrey Bland, PhD, FACN, FACB, CNS, is Founder and President of the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute and CEO of Kindex Therapeutics. Dr. Bland earned degrees in both biology and chemistry and founded the Institute for Functional Medicine.

He has written a number of books. The most recent is The Disease Delusion: Conquering the Causes of Chronic Illness for a Healthier, Longer and Happier Life.

You can find him online, on Facebook or on Twitter.

This program is scheduled to air on November 22, 2014. The podcast of this program will be available the Monday after the broadcast date, Nov. 24, 2014.

The show can be streamed online from this site and podcasts can be downloaded for free.

Download the mp3