Katlego Sekhu

The physical appearance of the actors in Mzansi Magic’s Shaka ILembe has drawn plenty of commentaries from people on social media. Sparking the conversation on 959 Breakfast on whether it’s all about genes or whether there are other factors that contribute to how our bodies look.
Dr Nelisiwe Sibisi Zimu, a general practitioner, spoke with Sizwe and the team about what those factors are.
Dr Zimu notes that it’s a combination of factors including genetics, environment, and lifestyle.
“The is a concept called epigenetics where we don’t only rely on the original genes but we are also seeing the effects of genes slightly changing over time because of the learning of new information. And that is both at a physiological and a psychological level,” she expounded.
“It’s not a matter of ‘because of my genes then I am damned to be a certain way.’ We can still do something to change our lifestyles to improve. We can do this by improving our environment and our lifestyle in order for the next generation to benefit.”
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