Year 10 Science · Unit 1 · Lesson 1
Challenge Worksheet
Learning Goals
Evaluate the claim
Someone claims...
"Your genes determine everything about who you are, there is no point in exercising or eating well because your health outcomes are already written in your DNA. People who develop heart disease or type 2 diabetes were always going to get those conditions no matter what they did."
(a) What part of this claim is supported by the science you've learned? Explain how genes do influence traits such as health, physical features and disease risk.
(b) What is misleading or missing from this claim? Use what you know about gene–environment interaction, epigenetics, and lifestyle diseases (e.g. type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease) to explain why this claim overstates the role of genes.
(c) What evidence or extra information would you need to decide whether a specific person's health outcome was shaped mostly by their genes, mostly by their environment, or by both? Why is this a difficult question to answer?
1. Identical twins share 100% of their DNA. Yet studies show that one identical twin can develop type 2 diabetes while the other does not. Using your understanding of genetics and gene–environment interaction, explain how this is possible.
2. A student argues: "Epigenetics proves that genes don't matter, you can completely rewrite your genetic destiny through lifestyle choices." Evaluate this statement. Is it an improvement on the claim in the Go Deeper section? What does it still get wrong?
Wrap Up
In one sentence, what is the most important idea about genes and environment that this lesson taught you?