Unlock Your Genes – the podcast
Companion episodes to the book Unlock Your Genes for Precision Health by Dr. Daniel Wallerstorfer – true stories from the world of genetics.
- Episode 01
How It All Started
How did personalized genetics become a science — and a life's mission? Dr. Daniel Wallerstorfer's origin story: the birth of nutrigenetics, and why one person's genes can completely change what "healthy" means for them. The opening episode of the series based on the book "Unlock Your Genes for Precision Health".
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 02
The Angelina Effect
When Angelina Jolie went public about her BRCA1 mutation, the world suddenly understood hereditary cancer risk. What BRCA variants actually do, how age changes cancer risk, and what carrying a high-risk variant means in practice — including the surprising role of vitamin D in breast tissue.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 03
The Celtic Curse
Hereditary hemochromatosis — when the body can't stop absorbing iron. Why the HFE variant is so common in people of Celtic descent, why it's misdiagnosed for years while organs quietly take damage, and why early genetic screening can be the difference between a normal life and irreversible harm.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 04
The Blood Clot
Factor V Leiden: a single letter in your DNA that changes how your blood clots. What thrombosis risk really means for carriers, why the popular "daily aspirin" advice is more nuanced than most people think, and what pregnant women with this variant need to know.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 05
The Berlin Patient
One man was cured of HIV — because his donor carried a broken CCR5 gene. The story of the Berlin Patient, why a missing receptor makes cells resistant to the virus, and how viruses themselves are now being turned from enemies into tools for gene therapy.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 06
Pharmacogenetics
Why does the same painkiller work for one person and do nothing — or harm — another? Codeine is the classic example: a pro-drug your body must activate first. How genes control drug metabolism, and why medication is becoming personal.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 07
The Story of Lactose
Most adult humans can't digest milk — the ability to do so is a recent mutation. How the LCT gene evolved alongside dairy farming, the different forms of lactose intolerance (primary, congenital, acquired), and how it differs from a true milk protein allergy.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 08
The Story of Gluten
Celiac disease is the story of an immune system with the wrong programming. What the DQ-A1 and DQ-B1 receptor genes do, why gluten triggers the gut to attack itself in genetically susceptible people, and why celiac disease seems so much more common today.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 09
The Gene Diet
Why do some people burn fat better and others carbs? The big weight episode: the FTO obesity gene, the hunger hormone gene GHRL, leptin — and how variants like FABP2, PPARG, ADRB2 and ADRB3 shape whether a low-fat or low-carb strategy fits your biology.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 10
The Fire Brigade
Every second, free radicals attack your cells — and a genetic "fire brigade" puts the fires out. SOD2, GPX1, CAT, NQO1: how your antioxidant defense genes differ, and why antioxidant supplementation matters far more for some genotypes than others.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 11
The Scourge of the Seas
Scurvy killed more sailors than battle ever did — because humans are one of the few animals that can't make their own vitamin C. The story of how we lost that gene, and how genetic variants still change how much vitamin C each of us needs today.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 12
The Food Mystery
The same food can be good for one person and counterproductive for another. The core idea of nutrigenetics: how gene variants change what nutrients do in your body — and why universal nutrition advice so often fails.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 13
The Lipid Legacy
LDL, HDL, triglycerides — your blood lipid profile is heavily inherited. What APOE, APOA1, LDLR and CETP do, and why the same diet produces completely different cholesterol numbers in different people.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 14
A Happy Century
How your body breaks down toxins — and why some people tolerate alcohol, caffeine or medications so differently. The CYP and GST detox gene families, NAT2, and the genetic side of addiction risk.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 15
The Asian Glow
Why do many East Asians flush red after one drink? A single ALDH2 variant slows the breakdown of a toxic alcohol byproduct — with consequences for health, culture and drinking norms across an entire region.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 16
Born To Be Great
ACTN3 — the "sprinter gene" — and ACE for endurance: how genetics shapes athletic potential, training response, recovery speed and injury risk. What elite performance owes to DNA, and what stays in your hands.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 17
The Man With Two Faces
A truck driver whose window-side face aged decades faster than the other — a natural experiment in skin aging. How genes control collagen breakdown and UV damage response, and what that means for personalized skin care.
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 18
The Genetic Memory
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 19
Into The Blood
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 20
Escape Velocity
Watch on YouTube ↗ - Episode 21
Instructions From Nature
Watch on YouTube ↗
More background articles: Genetics & nutrition knowledge · NOVO Academy