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stomach acid and methylation ?

vortex

Senior Member
Messages
162
I have been doing the methylation protocol for a year and now up to 5,000 mcg of methylfolate a day and feeling good, however, my stomach acid is still low, has anyone had their stomach acid return after doing methylation protocol ?


I have had persistent low stomach acid for the last 20 years and have to take betaine hcl with each meal, I take 3 caps of 650mg. otherwise I burp up food and it never digests.

The thing that perplexes me is that the stomach acid is technically betain hcl, so it is betaine a methyl donor and hcl stomach acid, so not sure if the betaine is helping my methylation also, but either way, I still dont have enough stomach acid. I was hoping once my methylation was going again, my stomach acid would kick back in.
 

Freddd

Senior Member
Messages
5,184
Location
Salt Lake City
I have been doing the methylation protocol for a year and now up to 5,000 mcg of methylfolate a day and feeling good, however, my stomach acid is still low, has anyone had their stomach acid return after doing methylation protocol ?


I have had persistent low stomach acid for the last 20 years and have to take betaine hcl with each meal, I take 3 caps of 650mg. otherwise I burp up food and it never digests.

The thing that perplexes me is that the stomach acid is technically betain hcl, so it is betaine a methyl donor and hcl stomach acid, so not sure if the betaine is helping my methylation also, but either way, I still dont have enough stomach acid. I was hoping once my methylation was going again, my stomach acid would kick back in.

Hi Vortex,

It takes both MeCbl and methylfolate to pass on the methyl group that may be originally supplied by TMG (Betaine but no acid)
 

PeterPositive

Senior Member
Messages
1,426
@vortex
I have a similar problem, although I don't take betaine hcl as it makes things worse for my intestines.
B vitamins seem to help with acid production although I am not sure if it's only about folate and B12.

Also I've never heard the connection between methylation cycle and stomach acid production. Do you have links to articles or papers where I can learn more?

Zinc seems also to be helpful for this issue. Have you tried it?

Have you ever tested for H. Pylori?

cheers
 

Helen

Senior Member
Messages
2,243
I have been doing the methylation protocol for a year and now up to 5,000 mcg of methylfolate a day and feeling good, however, my stomach acid is still low, has anyone had their stomach acid return after doing methylation protocol ?


I have had persistent low stomach acid for the last 20 years and have to take betaine hcl with each meal, I take 3 caps of 650mg. otherwise I burp up food and it never digests.

The thing that perplexes me is that the stomach acid is technically betain hcl, so it is betaine a methyl donor and hcl stomach acid, so not sure if the betaine is helping my methylation also, but either way, I still dont have enough stomach acid. I was hoping once my methylation was going again, my stomach acid would kick back in.

Untreated hypothyroidism might cause low stomach acid - as you probably know.
 

Freddd

Senior Member
Messages
5,184
Location
Salt Lake City
@vortex
I have a similar problem, although I don't take betaine hcl as it makes things worse for my intestines.
B vitamins seem to help with acid production although I am not sure if it's only about folate and B12.

Also I've never heard the connection between methylation cycle and stomach acid production. Do you have links to articles or papers where I can learn more?

Zinc seems also to be helpful for this issue. Have you tried it?

Have you ever tested for H. Pylori?

cheers

Hi PeterPositive,

I don't know if or how methylation affects stomach acid. It does however affect the epithelial tissues. Deficiency makes for very sticky gelled mucous whereas with recovery the mucous normalizes to slick and liquid. It decreases inflammation. I don't know what else it might do for the stomach.
 

Critterina

Senior Member
Messages
1,238
Location
Arizona, USA
Just chiming in with my experience: I have low stomach acid. I've taken methylation supplements for 18 months, but no improvement in stomach acid. I also have hypthyroidism, but it is being treated, also for for the same length of time (I started methylation and levothyroxine the same day.)

TMG (a.k.a. Betaine anhydrous) and Betaine HCl are two different things. The first is a methyl donor for the BHMT pathway, the second is what you take to increase stomach acid.
 

vortex

Senior Member
Messages
162
Thanks for the input everyone, I guess I should clarify, I don't know for sure if methylation is directly involved in my low stomach acid or not. I would say that it is tied into my illness somehow. I do think that my candida is perhaps inhibiting my stomach acid somehow, maybe a byproduct candida toxin is interfering. But I think my candida is related to my cfids and if I have been doing methylation protocol and I am getting better then I was hoping that eventually my system would heal and all the dysfunctions that are related would heal to. Meaning once my immune system is back it will fight the candida and then my stomach acid would come back.

So in other words, somehow directly or indirectly my stomach acid would recover eventually.
 

Critterina

Senior Member
Messages
1,238
Location
Arizona, USA
Hey, @South! Thanks for liking my post, but I have to correct what I said. I understand now is that the Betaine HCl that I took for stomach acid, when it gives up the HCl to increase the stomach acid, the part that's left over is the TMG, so you get that, too.