Methylfolate causing lack of coordination

[Neuro]

I've started taking 1 mg of methylfolate by Life extension and in some areas I feel better while in others I feel worse.

Benefits:

• Increased focus
• Increased energy
• Slightly increased motivation
• Decreased sleep time from 12 hours to 8-10

Cons:

• Brain fog
• Lack of coordination, I keep bumping into things. I was taking clothes out of my dresser and hit the edge with my hand. This has never happened to me before.
• Memory loss
• Feeling dumb, not being able to learn things
• Heart palpitations

Symptoms that have not changed:

• Severe anhedonia
• Muscle weakness
• Lack of appetite

For B12 I get 150 mcg from my multivitamin in the form of methylcobalamin. My last blood test my B12 levels were at 647 pmol/L.

I take my multivitamin every other day as I've noticed that it causes fatigue if I take it everyday. However, this was long before I discovered methylfolate. Could the fatigue from my multivitamin have been due to a methylfolate deficiency?

My main goal with methylfolate is to increase BH4, but I've read that methylcobalamin actually decreases BH4 and instead increases methylation. I have no idea what methylation is, but I do know that BH4 is involved in the synthesis of neurotransmitters which is what I'm after.

What should I do to decrease the side effects?

 

[ahmo]

Cons:

• Brain fog
• Lack of coordination, I keep bumping into things. I was taking clothes out of my dresser and hit the edge with my hand. This has never happened to me before.
• Memory loss
• Feeling dumb, not being able to learn things
• Heart palpitations

Are all of these new? Heart palps could be a rther predictable response to folate, need for potassium. Some people can get enough from bananas or coconut juice. Others, like me, need to supplement. I chose Potass gluconate powder.

I can't comment on coordination. When B12 levels are raised, nerves can come back on line, and cause symptoms, but that's not what you have.

It's unlikely you're getting much B12 from taking it in a B complex. Frequently there's not enough intrinsic factor in gut (stomach?) to convert it into useable form. Path levels of B12 are typically useless. I'd suggest trying some B12 sublingual, Enzymatic Therapies is the most highly rated. Suggested to put it in gum line, rather than under tongue, for better absorption. However, some people experience issues w/ discomfort of teeth.

Re BH4, See the links in my signature for Martin Pall. He believes there is a category of illness, including ME, defined by a pathological nitric oxide cycle. At the core of this cycle is BH4. His regimen for dealing with this NO/ONOO cycle is mostly antioxidants, of all forms. I've been relying on green tea, carrots, mixed seeds and nuts. When needed, I use supplements. I've had a lot of benefit applying his ideas. Once I had this as a framework, or lens, through which to see my symptoms, I could manage them. I'm now more likely to catch things in this early state of NO/ONOO (just like it sounds) and be able to avoid symptoms and crashes.

 

[adreno]

You likely need more B12.

 

[Neuro]

Are all of these new? Heart palps could be a rther predictable response to folate, need for potassium. Some people can get enough from bananas or coconut juice. Others, like me, need to supplement. I chose Potass gluconate powder.

I can't comment on coordination. When B12 levels are raised, nerves can come back on line, and cause symptoms, but that's not what you have.

It's unlikely you're getting much B12 from taking it in a B complex. Frequently there's not enough intrinsic factor in gut (stomach?) to convert it into useable form. Path levels of B12 are typically useless. I'd suggest trying some B12 sublingual, Enzymatic Therapies is the most highly rated. Suggested to put it in gum line, rather than under tongue, for better absorption. However, some people experience issues w/ discomfort of teeth.

Re BH4, See the links in my signature for Martin Pall. He believes there is a category of illness, including ME, defined by a pathological nitric oxide cycle. At the core of this cycle is BH4. His regimen for dealing with this NO/ONOO cycle is mostly antioxidants, of all forms. I've been relying on green tea, carrots, mixed seeds and nuts. When needed, I use supplements. I've had a lot of benefit applying his ideas. Once I had this as a framework, or lens, through which to see my symptoms, I could manage them. I'm now more likely to catch things in this early state of NO/ONOO (just like it sounds) and be able to avoid symptoms and crashes.

Yes, all of those are new. What do you mean by usable form? I thought methylb12 is the usable form?

You likely need more B12.

When I take B12 I actually feel as though the benefits from methylfolate decrease. Doesn't B12 decrease BH4 synthesis by increasing methylation?

 

[ahmo]

What do you mean by usable form? I thought methylb12 is the usable form?

If there's not enough intrinsic factor, you won't absorb B12 you've swallowed. That's why sublingual, injectable, transdermal, inhaled forms are more effective. Until you're stabilized, sublingual is probably the most practical,

 

[Neuro]

I see that everyone is suggesting I need more B12, but how come when I take my multivitamin the benefits of methylfolate decrease? It's mostly a decrease in dopamine as I start having trouble focusing, I become unmotivated, disorganized, etc.

I've read on this site that some people cannot handle Methylb12 and require hyrdoxob12 instead. Could this be the case for me? Or is there something in my multivitamin that's causing this problem?

 

[Phred]

@Neuro what multi are you taking? There could be clues in that. Does it have folic acid? Does it have large quantities of B1, B2, or B3?

I agree that you should probably have more b12. 125mcg every other day isn't much when you're taking 1mg of folate every day.

Also you "cons" list sound like a mix of low b12 and hypokalemia (low potassium). Meaning you might need to increase both.

 

[TheChosenOne]

It's hard to figure out what is going on if you are taking a multivitamin.
HydroxyB12 is a good idea if you have COMT mutations or cannot tolerate methyl donors in general, but it's way more expensive and not as effective. HydroxyB12 alone doesn't do the trick, but in combination with small amounts of methylB12 (as in ~50 mcg/day), it is very effective. It's something that you can try anyway. There is not much you can do wrong with hydroxyB12 I guess.
Something else that you can try is lithium (orotate) which helps B12 to be transported to the blood cells and it stabilizes dopamine levels. It is one of the most important supplements that I take.
Memory loss can be related to brain fog. Increased amonia can cause memory loss as well as tremors, hyperactive reflexes, paranoia and panic attacks. This might point in the direction of a CBS upregulation.
This same upregulation can increase hydrogen sulfate, which causes brain fog. I take modybdenum for that. If you have a CBS upregulation, you can try to decrease homocysteine by stimulating BHMT. Something that you can try for this is TMG or lecithin/phosphatedylcholine.
Fixing the long route is not what you want in the long run, but it's something that can get you started.
These are just guesses. Without a methylation panel, it's kind of hard to figure out what is going on.

 

[Neuro]

I posted the link to the multivitamin I'm taking but for whatever reason a moderator decided to delete it. The multivitamin I take is Life Extenstion two-per-day. Is there anything in it that can lower dopamine levels? It has all the b-vitamins and folate from lemon peel extract. BTW, what form of folate is found in lemon peel? Is it methylfolate?

Where can I get hyrdoxyb12 from?

 

[TheChosenOne]

That supplement has 28 different vitamins and minerals in it. Finding out what causes problems is almost impossible. Methylfolate is the active form. Folate is what appears naturally in vegetables and should be fine to take.
I buy everything from iHerb, but if you live in the US, you might have a much bigger choise when you buy your products from Amazon.