These qu's may have been asked before but I don't quite have it in me to trawl through mega posts to find out
What I want to know is, when embarking on the Methylation protocol should one
1). Cease all other supplements?
2). If not, what are the guiding principles for extraneous supplementation?
3). Are there any particular prescription meds commonly prescribed in M.E./Fibro that tend to clash with the methylation protocol?
4). If one is taking Hydrocortisone would you recommend the Lecithin rather than the phosphatydyl serine?
I think that is all for the moment!
Blessings
Francelle
Hi, Francelle.
This is a broad set of questions! First off, let me note that I am not a licensed physician. In California, where I reside, it is against the law for a nonlicensed person providing heatlhcare advice to tell a person not to take something that has been prescribed by a licensed physician. So decisions about discontinuing drugs will need to be discussed with your physician.
With regard to supplements, I would say that folic acid should be discontinued if it is being taken, because it will compete for absorption with the active folates in the protocol. If SAMe is being taken, it might be necessary to discontinue it, because the methylation protocol will raise SAMe on its own, and too much can provoke headaches and other symptoms due to a rise in sulfite if too much in the way of sulfur-containing metabolites is coming in. Others, such as NAC and MSM could contribute to this, also.
If cyanocobalamin is being taken, it isn't a problem unless the dosage is high, such as in the milligrams per day range. Micrograms should be O.K. I'm probably not thinking of all the supplements a person might be taking, so if you have questions about specific ones, let me know.
With regard to prescription meds (and again, this should be discussed with your physician) a couple of people who were on thyroid hormone supplementation have reported that they had to stop it, because their thyroids apparently began to operate more normally, and taking the supplementary thyroid hormone then gave the symptoms of hyperthyroidism (insomnia, sweating, rapid heartbeat). I would think that meds that affect the neurotransmitter levels, such as SSRIs, SNRIs, and other psychoactive drugs should be considered carefully as the methylation cycle function improves, because this will affect the synthesis and metabolism of the neurotransmitters, and there may be an interaction. I should also mention that lifting the methylation cycle block and raising glutathione up to normal will likely cause improvement of the detoxication system. The detox system is what works to remove drugs from the system, just as it does toxins in general. Improvement in this system's function could cause drugs to be removed more rapidly, so that the dosages that have been used may no longer be effective. The dosages and dosage intervals that physicians are told to use by the drug companies are set up to be able to counter the action of the average person's detox system, so as to maintain concentrations of the drug that are therapeutic, but hopefully not very toxic. For some drugs, there is a narrow range over which this can be done, so changing the efficiency of the detox system could be an important factor.
Again, I'm probably not thinking of all the meds a person might be taking, so if you have questions about specific ones, let me know.
Yes, if you are on hydrocortisone, it would probably be best to choose the lecithin. Over time, hopefully the HPA axis will improve in function so that the hydrocortisone will not be needed, but that could take some time.
As you probably know, the treatment of chronic conditions with drugs usually does not address root causes, and is intended only to address symptoms. The methylation protocol, on the other hand, is designed to address the core of the pathophysiology of ME/CFS. If it is successful, the symptoms will resolve naturally, and drug treatment will not longer be needed. This has happened for some people, and I would like to see it happen for you and many more as well.
Again, please coordinate with your physician.
Best regards,
Rich
