Thanks for the information Fredd, and everyone. I too have equal numbers of characteristics from both the under & over Methylator list, so that doesn't help me much with diagnostics. It has been many years since I have done Neurotransmitter levels and they were normal. My last homocystein level (10 years ago) was very high.
I came to believe I have a "blocked methylation" problem primarily based on an extreme intolerance of certain meds and other supplements. One of my earliest symptoms was med intolerance....not sensitivity, intolerance. The biggest offenders are antidepressants and antibiotics. I start off the first few days feeling great improvement, but then after day 2 or 3, begin to feel more and more "toxic". If I continue the med, I will end up more and more ill with a feeling extreme toxicity. Many years ago I discovered a great response to supplement SAMe. But I would then get the same reaction with the SAMe as with the other meds....feel great for 2-3 days, then begin to feel toxic. To this day, I react exactly the same to the same meds and to SAMe supplementation. This is all I have basically gone on to self diagnose as having a methylation block. Any advice is appreciated.
also, can anyone tell me why I don't see references to Dr Kunin in any of the methylation groups and studies around the forums? Seems odd because I thought he pioneered the work.
I came to believe I have a "blocked methylation" problem primarily based on an extreme intolerance of certain meds and other supplements. One of my earliest symptoms was med intolerance....not sensitivity, intolerance. The biggest offenders are antidepressants and antibiotics. I start off the first few days feeling great improvement, but then after day 2 or 3, begin to feel more and more "toxic". If I continue the med, I will end up more and more ill with a feeling extreme toxicity. Many years ago I discovered a great response to supplement SAMe. But I would then get the same reaction with the SAMe as with the other meds....feel great for 2-3 days, then begin to feel toxic. To this day, I react exactly the same to the same meds and to SAMe supplementation. This is all I have basically gone on to self diagnose as having a methylation block. Any advice is appreciated.
also, can anyone tell me why I don't see references to Dr Kunin in any of the methylation groups and studies around the forums? Seems odd because I thought he pioneered the work.
Intolerance of meds and problems with tolerating sulfur-containing supplements like SAMe are very common in people who have the partial methylation cycle block. I think the former is due to the fact that the detox system is very dependent on metabolites within the sulfur metabolism, including cysteine, glutathione, taurine and sulfate, and hte levels of all of these can be abnormal when there is a partial methylation cycle block. Glutathione depletion also impacts the operation of the Phase I cytochrome P450 enzymes that metabolize many of the meds, because oxidizing free radicals are produced by them, and glutathione is the basis for the cell's antioxidant enzyme system.
The sensitivity to sulfur-containing substances may be caused by their conversion to forms such as hydrogen sulfide and sulfite, which are toxic at sufficient levels. Sometimes supplementing with molybdenum can help with this problem, because it forms a cofactor for the enzyme sulfite oxidase, which converts sulfite to sulfate for excretion.
With regard to Dr. Richard Kunin, it's true that he has been interested in methylation for many years. He and his son supply a supplement called Ola Loa that is intended to address methylation issues. He has also spoken several times at the Orthomolecular Health Medicine Society, of which he is the president. He has been very encouraging to me in working on methylation-related issues. He invited me to speak at the Society's meeting two years ago, which I did, and he invited Dr. Neil Nathan to speak on our clinical study of methylation block treatment in CFS at the most recent meeting of this Society last weekend, which he did. So yes, I have learned a lot from Dr. Kunin, and he is very aware of what we are doing. He hasn't actually written much on the methylation topic, so I haven't had anything written by him to quote, but we are friends.
Best regards,
Rich