Re: Methylation Test?

[Guest guest]

Hi, Jim.

The best I can do is what I posted to Mr. Raba a while back:

There are a couple of approaches that one can take to try to

determine if their methylation cycle is blocked. One is to have the

enzymes involved in it characterized for polymorphisms, such as by

www.genovations.com or www.testing4health.com. Then, based on the

results, one can choose particular supplements if they appear to be

needed. The other approach is to try to use other information to

infer whether the methylation cycle is blocked, and if it looks as

though it might be, then to try a series of supplements to see if

there is improvement. Please bear in mind that this is an

approximate approach, not as accurate as characterizing genetic

polymorphisms. The types of questions one might try to answer to

shed light on this are as follows:

1. Are you low in glutathione? (A " yes " answer would suggest that

there is a block in methylation, because these tend to be tied

together.)

2. How do you respond to supplements containing cysteine or

methionine, such as whey protein or NAC? (If you don't respond well

to these, it would suggest a block.)

3. Is your homocysteine level high, low, or normal? (If it's high or

low, you may have a block. High would suggest a block in

transsulfuration, which may be helped by trying B6, or better yet, P-

5-P (the active form of B6) together with magnesium. Low would

suggest a block at methionine synthase, and might be helped by

methyl B12, folinic acid, and/or trimethylglycine.)

4. Are you sensitive to sulfur-containing foods in general, such as

the broccoli family, onions, garlic, etc.? (If " yes, " it would

suggest overloading of your sulfoxidation pathway, which might be

helped by taking molybdenum.)

5. Do you receive any benefit from taking supplements that support

the sulfur metabolism, such as B12, B6, folic acid,(or active forms

of these, i.e. methyl B12, pyridoxal-5-phosphate, and folinic

acid) trimethylglycine, dimethylglycine, or magnesium? (If " yes, "

this would suggest that you have a block. This is of course begging

the question, but some people have already tried these things and do

know if it helped them or not.)

6. Are you high in mercury or other heavy metals? (If " yes, " this

probably means that you were low in glutathione, at least in the

past, and that could infer that you have or had a methylation cycle

block. Also, mercury can directly block enzymes. So detoxing the

mercury from your body may be part of the solution to the block, but

the other supplements might help as well.)

7. Have you had a urinary organic acids test that measured 5-

hydroxyindoleacetic acid, and if so, how did it come out? (This is

the metabolic breakdown product of serotonin.) (If your 5-HIAA is

low, that would suggest that your body is not making enough

serotonin. That could be caused by a block in methylation.)

8. How do you respond to taking 5-HTP or tryptophan, if you have

tried them? (If these cause you problems, it may suggest that your

methylation cycle is blocked, so that you are not able to use them

to make serotonin very well.)

9. Do you have sleep problems? (If " yes, " it could be caused by

problems in making serotonin and/or melatonin, and that could be a

result of a methylation block.)

10. Do you experience a lot of pain? (If " yes, " it could be due to

low serotonin, and that could be due to a methylation block.)

11. Do you experience mood problems? (If " yes, " it could be due to

low serotonin, and that could be due to a methylation block.)

12. What is your plasma sulfate concentration? (If it is below

normal, this suggests problems in your sulfur metabolism. It could

be a problem in your methylation cycle, or in your sulfoxidation

pathway, or your kidneys could be wasting sulfate into your urine.)

13. What is your plasma cysteine concentration? (If it is high,

there could be a problem in sulfoxidation or in synthesis of

glutathione.) A high ratio of cysteine to sulfate in the plasma

would suggest a sulfoxidation problem. If so, try molybdenum.)

14. What is your plasma taurine concentration? (If low, it would

suggest problems higher up in your sulfur metabolism. It could be

in the methylation cycle, or in the transsulfuration pathway.)

15. What is your plasma methionine concentration? (If it's high, it

suggests a methylation cycle block.)

16. How do you respond to taking SAMe? (If you don't respond well to

it, this suggests a methylation cycle block.)

Rich

>

> Is there an easy way to see if one has a block in the methylation

cycle?

> Maybe even indirectly?

>

> Jim

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