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Gut First?

Messages
48
Location
Montague, MA
Ever since testing homozygous 677 gene variant, I have been reading the threads for a while trying to figure out how to get started on the protocol. Tonight I came upon this quote from an article by Rich:

One of the most important preparatory activities is to make sure the gastrointestinal system is operating well enough to be able to absorb nutrients, including both food and the oral supplements used in the treatment, and also well enough to be able to dispose of toxins into the stools on a regular basis. If this is not done, it is likely that the treatment will not be successful. Treatments for the G.I. system, as well as for other aspects described below, are discussed in Dr. Amy Yaskos book. Some CFS patients have reported benefit from Xifaxan to treat deleterious bacteria in the gut. This antibiotic is not absorbed from the G.I. tract, so it does not present problems for the detox system.

I find this somewhat discouraging since i have been trying to treat my gut for years and have been going in circles with it.

Now I am thinking that I need to back up and treat the leaky gut and multiple food allergies. I have very high food allergies and eat basically meat and veggies. I had hoped that the clearing the Methylation pathways would help to heal the gut. Now I am reading that the gut comes first.

Have you resolved gut issues before starting the protocol or is it more a back and forth kind of thing? My stool tests don't show anything remarkable in terms of parasites or bacteria. Anyone have a good recommendation for a gut doctor. I went to a top guy in NYC who did not find anything.
Any thoughts or experiences to share?
Lucy
 

Freddd

Senior Member
Messages
5,184
Location
Salt Lake City
Ever since testing homozygous 677 gene variant, I have been reading the threads for a while trying to figure out how to get started on the protocol. Tonight I came upon this quote from an article by Rich:

One of the most important preparatory activities is to make sure the gastrointestinal system is operating well enough to be able to absorb nutrients, including both food and the oral supplements used in the treatment, and also well enough to be able to dispose of toxins into the stools on a regular basis. If this is not done, it is likely that the treatment will not be successful. Treatments for the G.I. system, as well as for other aspects described below, are discussed in Dr. Amy Yaskos book. Some CFS patients have reported benefit from Xifaxan to treat deleterious bacteria in the gut. This antibiotic is not absorbed from the G.I. tract, so it does not present problems for the detox system.

I find this somewhat discouraging since i have been trying to treat my gut for years and have been going in circles with it.

Now I am thinking that I need to back up and treat the leaky gut and multiple food allergies. I have very high food allergies and eat basically meat and veggies. I had hoped that the clearing the Methylation pathways would help to heal the gut. Now I am reading that the gut comes first.

Have you resolved gut issues before starting the protocol or is it more a back and forth kind of thing? My stool tests don't show anything remarkable in terms of parasites or bacteria. Anyone have a good recommendation for a gut doctor. I went to a top guy in NYC who did not find anything.
Any thoughts or experiences to share?
Lucy

Hi Lucy,

I had decades of gut problems. I had multiple food and chemical sensitivities. Nothing absorbed well. I vomited almost daily. I had nausea and IBS. I frequently awakened at night with stomach acid about to gush out of my mouth. The first few times I tried elimination diets it was "everything". The last time, after mb12, eliminating dairy made a huge difference. ALl the other sensitivities had gone away. When I am deficient of folate I have lots of allergies and IBS. When I have sufficient folate with enough mb12 the allergies and IBS and other inflammatory things all go away. As lack of b12 and folate cause a tissue breakdown of the stomach and intestines, well known deficiency symptoms, these are required for them to actually heal. As these can both be taken sublingually absorbtion on these two items is not a problem for a messed up gut. The healing process was relatively slow in my gut but got nowhere at all without the methylb12.
 
Messages
48
Location
Montague, MA
Hi Lucy,

I had decades of gut problems. I had multiple food and chemical sensitivities. Nothing absorbed well. I vomited almost daily. I had nausea and IBS. I frequently awakened at night with stomach acid about to gush out of my mouth. The first few times I tried elimination diets it was "everything". The last time, after mb12, eliminating dairy made a huge difference. ALl the other sensitivities had gone away. When I am deficient of folate I have lots of allergies and IBS. When I have sufficient folate with enough mb12 the allergies and IBS and other inflammatory things all go away. As lack of b12 and folate cause a tissue breakdown of the stomach and intestines, well known deficiency symptoms, these are required for them to actually heal. As these can both be taken sublingually absorbtion on these two items is not a problem for a messed up gut. The healing process was relatively slow in my gut but got nowhere at all without the methylb12.

Fredd,
Thanks for your reply. So it seems I can start this protocol without having a perfect gut and that the B12 and methylfolate may support gut healing. I have tried methyl B12 at various times over the years, daily shots, I gave myself. I have also tried methylfolate sublingually for a brief time. But you are saying that together, the synergistic effect is what we need? What dose of each do you recommend starting with? I had a wonderful initial response to Deplin several months ago on a very high dose prescribed for depression by my psychotropic med. person. Then after about a week it faded. I understand now, through this forum, that methylation pathways were probably overwhelmed and I need to titrate the dosages.
thanks so much for your input
Lucy
 

richvank

Senior Member
Messages
2,732
Fredd,
Thanks for your reply. So it seems I can start this protocol without having a perfect gut and that the B12 and methylfolate may support gut healing. I have tried methyl B12 at various times over the years, daily shots, I gave myself. I have also tried methylfolate sublingually for a brief time. But you are saying that together, the synergistic effect is what we need? What dose of each do you recommend starting with? I had a wonderful initial response to Deplin several months ago on a very high dose prescribed for depression by my psychotropic med. person. Then after about a week it faded. I understand now, through this forum, that methylation pathways were probably overwhelmed and I need to titrate the dosages.
thanks so much for your input
Lucy

Hi, Lucy.

I am more and more coming to the view that because there are so many interactions between the vicious circle mechanism associated with the partial methylation cycle block and the digestive system, that both need to be dealt with together.

With regard to your body's response to Deplin, I suspect that the function of your methylation cycle was initially being limited by lack of folate, and the Deplin took care of that lack. However, then the functional deficiency in B12 became the limiting factor, and that's why the Deplin (or methylfolate) alone no longer was able to help by itself. The methionine synthase enzyme, which is the part of the methylation cycle that is partially blocked in most cases of ME/CFS, needs both B12 and methylcobalamin. Whichever is the most lacking will be the limiting factor. The enzymes of the methylation cycle and related pathways also need several other vitamins and minerals as cofactors, and that's why the methyation protocols include them as well. But the biggest need is for the B12 and the methylfolate together. That seems to be the key to the benefit of all the various methylation treatments that are now in use. It's true that some of them use folic acid or folinic acid as the folate form. Some people can make use of these well, while others either cannot use them efficiently, or even find that they are deleterious.
I still favor a combination of methylfolate and folinic acid for most people with ME/CFS.

Best regards,

Rich