Stewart
Senior Member
- Messages
- 291
I’ve recently stumbled upon the methylation cycle as the possible origin of health problems I’ve been struggling with for the past 20 years. I’ve been reading some of the discussions on this forum and trying to get my head around the basics – but it’s obviously very complicated, and as I don’t have a health or research background I’d greatly appreciate some pointers from anyone here who understands the processes and reactions involved.
I’ve struggled with ME/CFS for the last two decades but it’s only been in the last couple of months that I’ve become aware of methylation as a possible factor. Earlier this year I saw a rheumatologist concerning recurring spine problems that I’ve had for over ten years now and they identified peripheral neuropathy in my feet (absent ankle jerk in both feet) and down my right hand side (diminished responses).The rheumatologist said it was possible that this was caused by the problems with my back, and sent me for an MRI of my spine. However when the results came back they discovered that this wasn’t the cause of the neurological issues – but they weren’t interested in investigating further, and my GP has downplayed the seriousness of the neuropathy as well.
After doing a bit of reading on my own I wondered if the neuropathy might be the result of a vitamin B deficiency. So I took a B complex tablet – and within 15 minutes experienced tingling in my hands and feet, aching in my joints, a crawling sensation down my legs and other jolting sensations down my back and around the back of my head. After a couple of days on this supplement the reactions started to die down, so I tried upping the dosage by taking two tablets – and sure enough I again experienced the same reactions all over my body.
As I wasn’t sure which specific B vitamin it was that was causing a reaction, I tried adding some B1 tablets. Nothing happened. Then I tried some sublingual methylB12 and took 2mg - I didn’t notice a reaction at first, but within a couple of hours I had a throbbing headache. As I carried on taking the methylb12 over the next few days I started to experience wild mood swings – I became very tearful and depressed, and struggled to cope with kind of any social interactions. I tried to get up to a daily dose of 5mg, but I just couldn’t cope with the severity of the emotional disturbances so I’ve currently stopped at 3mg a day (2mg in the morning, 1mg before bed). The mood swings seem more manageable with this dosage (so far at least).
So I’m pretty sure that B12 is part of the problem (despite my pre-supplementation blood test giving a B12 reading of 512) and after a bit of research I suspect that this means that I’m not methylating properly – but I’m at a bit of loss as to how I proceed from here. Is my reaction to the methylb12 a standard healing response that I need to push through – or I do I have some sort of intolerance to methyl that means I need to use a different form of B12 instead? Presumably it would help if I had some tests done to get a fuller picture of what’s going on and how to proceed – but I’m not sure which one(s) would be most useful.
Additionally I’m wondering if there’s any way that a methylation issue can cause problems with the integrity of spinal discs. My MRI results showed 7 herniated discs and 3 bulging discs (in addition to degeneration of several other discs) and the rheumatologists told me that it was extremely unusual to see so many issues in someone my age (I’m in my late 30s).They had no idea what caused it, and couldn’t suggest anything in the way of treatment. My Google searches have revealed that lots of people with disc problems seem to also be deficient in B12, but I haven’t come across any clear link or explanation as to why this should be the case.
So, I have three questions that I’d be grateful for some help with;
I’ve struggled with ME/CFS for the last two decades but it’s only been in the last couple of months that I’ve become aware of methylation as a possible factor. Earlier this year I saw a rheumatologist concerning recurring spine problems that I’ve had for over ten years now and they identified peripheral neuropathy in my feet (absent ankle jerk in both feet) and down my right hand side (diminished responses).The rheumatologist said it was possible that this was caused by the problems with my back, and sent me for an MRI of my spine. However when the results came back they discovered that this wasn’t the cause of the neurological issues – but they weren’t interested in investigating further, and my GP has downplayed the seriousness of the neuropathy as well.
After doing a bit of reading on my own I wondered if the neuropathy might be the result of a vitamin B deficiency. So I took a B complex tablet – and within 15 minutes experienced tingling in my hands and feet, aching in my joints, a crawling sensation down my legs and other jolting sensations down my back and around the back of my head. After a couple of days on this supplement the reactions started to die down, so I tried upping the dosage by taking two tablets – and sure enough I again experienced the same reactions all over my body.
As I wasn’t sure which specific B vitamin it was that was causing a reaction, I tried adding some B1 tablets. Nothing happened. Then I tried some sublingual methylB12 and took 2mg - I didn’t notice a reaction at first, but within a couple of hours I had a throbbing headache. As I carried on taking the methylb12 over the next few days I started to experience wild mood swings – I became very tearful and depressed, and struggled to cope with kind of any social interactions. I tried to get up to a daily dose of 5mg, but I just couldn’t cope with the severity of the emotional disturbances so I’ve currently stopped at 3mg a day (2mg in the morning, 1mg before bed). The mood swings seem more manageable with this dosage (so far at least).
So I’m pretty sure that B12 is part of the problem (despite my pre-supplementation blood test giving a B12 reading of 512) and after a bit of research I suspect that this means that I’m not methylating properly – but I’m at a bit of loss as to how I proceed from here. Is my reaction to the methylb12 a standard healing response that I need to push through – or I do I have some sort of intolerance to methyl that means I need to use a different form of B12 instead? Presumably it would help if I had some tests done to get a fuller picture of what’s going on and how to proceed – but I’m not sure which one(s) would be most useful.
Additionally I’m wondering if there’s any way that a methylation issue can cause problems with the integrity of spinal discs. My MRI results showed 7 herniated discs and 3 bulging discs (in addition to degeneration of several other discs) and the rheumatologists told me that it was extremely unusual to see so many issues in someone my age (I’m in my late 30s).They had no idea what caused it, and couldn’t suggest anything in the way of treatment. My Google searches have revealed that lots of people with disc problems seem to also be deficient in B12, but I haven’t come across any clear link or explanation as to why this should be the case.
So, I have three questions that I’d be grateful for some help with;
- Do I push on with the methylb12, or should I play it safe and switch to another form of B12 instead (such as hydroxocobalamin)?
- What tests do I need to have carried out? From what I’ve read it seems that an SNP test (such as that offered by 23andme) and a methylation panel (like the one offered by seekinghealth.com) would be most useful – but is one of these more useful than the other? And is there anywhere in the UK – which is where I am - that offers either of them?
- Is there any research (or theories) connecting an impaired methylation cycle to problems with the intervertebral discs (or to collagen production more generally)?