COMT v158m ++ nutrition questions

[Ashx79]

Hi. I am 39yo, male and I am new to genetics and have found this very fascinating. Over the last 10 years or so I have been seeking better living via nutrition because I have battled a lot of anxiety and depression. Mainly anxiety and the depression was more of a result of prolonged anxiety and how it was effecting my life. In my teens and 20s I self medicated with alcohol, and now I am a recovering alcoholic happily sober and a former cigarette smoker. It has been quite a confusing trial and error experience having tried numerous SSRI and other non addicting medications to treat anxiety, and nothing was successful without worse side effects. I always just referred myself to being very sensitive to medication. I am 30lb overweight and my metabolism has slowed down a lot, and tend to have inflammation response to certain foods like grains. I am now much more active and exercising as part of my recovery health program. I have been med free for awhile now and working with a functional medicine doctor we did the genova testing and the results I got were Apo E (3/3), MTHFR C677T (--), A1298C (--), COMT V158M (++), TNF-a -308G-A (--). On the NutrEval results I show as being deficient in RiboflavinB2, NiacinB3, PyridoxineB6, and FolicAcidB9. Other things that were elevated are Benzoic acid, 5-Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid, Kynurenic Acid, Formiminoglutamic Acid, Xanthurenic acid, Glutaric Acid, Anserine, Beta-alanine, 1-Methylhistidine, 3-Methylhistidine, Phosphoethanolamine, lysine. Originally I sought out my doctor because I thought my testosterone was low and might need TRT, but it turns out my testosterone is normal within range, but during afternoon/evening my cortisol levels are very high. Which explains my on going trouble with sleeping. Until now the only thing that works to relax me for sleep has been unisom otc (antihistamine) and I really dont want to take that. I have tried regular un methylated bComplex and the b6 in it gives me wicked vivid nightmares so I have been avoiding the bvitamins like the plague. My theory is I have been getting adrenaline overload due to having COMT (++) and my doctor said I need the vitamins to be methylated for me to absorb them. These are the supplements that were prescribed for me, I ordered them but haven't taken them yet.
https://metagenics.com/lipo-gen
https://www.metagenics.com/adreset
https://www.metagenics.com/spm-active
https://www.metagenics.com/mag-glycinate
Can anyone that is familiar with, or that has COMT++ check to see if the ingredients in these are safe for COMT++ to take? After trying so many different supplements and having negative effects I am very weary of what I take now. After reading about COMT++ I am trying to understand and concerned with becoming over methylated. I am asking here because even though my doctor is a very good hormonal specialist I have a feeling the issues related to the COMT ++ gene are very complicated, and since this seems to be my main issue and not testosterone problems I am seeking more specialized guidance if that makes sense. I am very grateful for forums like this and thank you for your time.

 

[Mary]

Bump

 

[Moof]

Welcome, @Ashx79!

It's difficult for anyone to know whether, or to what extent, many common genetic mutations have any influence on our health and wellbeing. Looked at in isolation they do seem to be suggestive, but too little is known yet about the full picture of human genetics to be able to say categorically how X interacts with Y in the presence of Z (and the rest of the alphabet). None of us can interpret a zillion-piece jigsaw puzzle by looking at one or two of the tiles.

There's also the problem that direct-to-consumer genetic testing isn't always completely accurate in the first place. My advice would be to regard the likelihood of most mutations having this or that effect as an interesting possibility, but not as a fact.

A few food supplements seem to help people with ME a bit, but to be honest, most don't. As the disease is very variable for most of us, it can also be hard to be sure whether any benefit is due to a supplement or to a natural variation. Even when we establish that something really does help, different people are helped by different regimes. The only way to find out which helps you most is by testing things one at a time over long periods.

I don't want to discourage you from trying to find the best way forward – we're all doing it, as it's all we've got at the moment! – just to say that there are a lot of snake-oil pedlars out there trying to part you from your cash. When we do solve ME, it won't be with something you can buy from a health food store.

Finally, most of us find it all-nigh impossible to read huge walls of text, which may be why no-one else has replied to your post yet. It'll help people offer you support if you break up posts into short paragraphs.

 

[Ashx79]

Thanks for your response. Sorry about the wall of text. If I could edit the post I would make paragraphs but can't seem to edit it now. The reason I signed up with the website was because I was reading a lot of posts regarding genes and supplementing for them here, and since my doctor wasn't very thorough in describing what COMT v158m is in much depth (and I am an artist not a scientist) I began researching it online. Was hoping someone with similar genes could tell me if I need to be concerned with over methylation because my doctor didn't mention that to me.

 

[Moof]

Don't worry, you weren't to know that some folk struggle with big chunks of text.

Some of us place more weight on these SNPs than others – my opinion is that we should be cautious about how to interpret them, but they may be useful in suggesting things to try. Ultimately, few ME patients have found a way to recover most of their normal function, and where they have found things that genuinely help, it's often temporary. ME has an infuriating way of sustaining itself despite everything you throw at it.

Rest, pacing, and a good diet should be at the core of your self-care. People who have only been ill for a short time have the best chance of making a full recovery, as long as they rest. If along the way you find something that gives you an additional 10% of function, that's great, just don't be tempted to overdo it. The big danger is that you can push yourself into a relapse from which you never recover...soooo many of us have done that!

 

[Ashx79]

I am soo confused right now. Yesterday I tried the supplements my doctor gave me, and I had high anxiety all night couldnt sleep at all. Had a panic attack then crashed on the couch from adrenal fatigue. Been on the couch all day exhausted and anxious at the same time.

Emailed my doctor asking why I was given a supplement with Rhodiola being comt val158met, all readings ive found says its for val/val and definitly not met/met.

Why is there soo much confusion, I was told I need methylated vitamins, websites are saying dont take methyl donors.

Chronic stress is the reason im chronically fatigued. I go to a doctor for help, and they give me supplements to help lower cortisol and the sups make stress worse. So I look for help online and information is opposite of what doctor said. This is mind boggling!!!!!