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An Expert Swears By These Drinks To Support Methylation, Natural Detoxification & Longevity

Author:

Kara Fitzgerald, N.D.

February 17, 2022

Naturopathic Doctor

By Kara Fitzgerald, N.D.

Naturopathic Doctor

Kara Fitzgerald, N.D., IFMCP, received her doctorate of naturopathic medicine from the National University of Natural Medicine. She is the first-ever recipient of the Emerging Leadership Award from the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute in recognition of her work on DNA methylation

A cup of fresh tea at a picnic outside with reflections of nature

Image by Joanna Nixon / Stocksy

February 17, 2022

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What you drink is a key piece of optimizing your DNA methylation. It's vital that you stay adequately hydrated, which means we recommend drinking enough ounces of water, seltzer, or herbal tea per day to equal about half your body weight in pounds—the standard guideline used in functional medicine. That means, if you weigh 150 pounds, you need to aim for 75 fluid ounces of noncaffeinated, nonalcoholic, unsweetened beverages every day.

Functional Nutrition Training

Hydration is a crucial piece of detoxification—without consuming ample amounts of water, your toxic load will be higher, and toxins are an impediment to healthy DNA methylation. Beyond that, hydration is also crucial for reducing oxidative stress 1.

It's important that the water you drink either be filtered or spring (from a glass, not plastic, bottle). I recommend carbon-block filters, such as those made by Aquasauna or Multipure, because they will keep out most toxins and retain most trace minerals, although you will need to change the filter regularly so that it functions well and doesn't get contaminated with bacteria.

In addition to water, other DNA methylation–supportive beverages include:

Chamomile tea (another adaptogen rock star along with all the other teas listed here)
Coconut water (so loaded with potassium)
Green tea
Oolong tea
Other herbal teas, such as ginger, hibiscus, and rooibos
Seltzer (limit to two 12-ounce servings per day)
Turmeric tea, often known as golden milk

What about coffee and DNA methylation?

For those of us (me included) who are loath to give up coffee, know that it's a DNA methylation adaptogen, thanks to two amazing polyphenols it contains: caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid. Likely due to this fact, coffee, like green tea, has been solidly associated with longevity.

Looking at the research, it seems like you could consume quite a bit of coffee without negative effects and probably some good benefit. The tricky part is that for most of us (including me), the caffeine content in both green tea and coffee comes at the cost of lost sleep, or poor-quality sleep, which is definitely damaging to our DNA methylation and gene expression in the brain.

Here's what I recommend for coffee lovers:

Go organic
Limit to one or at most two cups
Finish your last cup before noon
Drink it black and unsweetened, or with MCT oil for an extra serving of healthy fat

Excerpted from Younger You: Reduce Your Bio Age and Live Longer, Better by Kara N. Fitzgerald, N.D. Copyright © 2022. Available from Hachette Go, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc.