Hi Linda,
I do think that what eat, what we breath, what we put on our bodies is important and can influence our heath and gene expression. We've stopped using personal care products that have petro chemicals and synthetic fragrances. We've changed out many of our household cleaning products to safer, more environmentally friendly also. No more chemicals on the lawn. It all adds up over time. Life Extension has an lengthy article on stem cells and the list of nutrients supporting healthy stem cells below is from the article. BTW...those blueberries must be organic since non-organic blueberries rank high when it comes to the number of pesticides found on them.
NUTRACEUTICALS KNOWN TO OPTIMIZE ADULT STEM CELLS
Blueberry
Green tea
Catechin (from green tea)
Carnosine
Vitamin D3
Resveratol (found in red wine)
Omega-3 fatty acids, including docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)
Hormones Known to Optimize Adult Stem Cells
Growth hormone
Estradiol
Testosterone
You can read the article here:
http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/...m_cells_01.htm
There's more research out there proving that gene expression is greatly influenced by its environment. Two of my favorite books are "Silent Spring" and "Slow Death by Rubber Duck". They show how pervasive toxins have become in our daily lives.