Day 16: Methylation and Homocysteine
Methylation is the attachment of a methyl group to another organic compound. All living organisms use methylation as a biochemical trigger switch to turn certain processes on and off. For example, when a specific gene in your DNA undergoes methylation, it will go from inactive to active. Methylation is a necessary and beneficial part of human biochemistry – until it happens at abnormal levels. Unfortunately, this can be true in up to 50 percent of the population. When methylation gets out of control, the risk for heart disease increases dramatically.
The test for methylation is a simple blood test for homocysteine level. Homocysteine is created internally from the amino acid methionine. Elevated homocysteine levels indicate that the methylation processes are not operating properly and that there is an increased risk for heart disease.
While many physicians believe that homocysteine levels below 11 are normal, we believe that if your homocysteine test levels are above 8-9, it is important that you undergo a few immediate lifestyle changes including dietary changes. Since red meat and fowl have high levels of homocysteine they should be avoided or eliminated. Since fish, fruits and vegetables have low levels of methionine they should be added. Research demonstrates that a vegan diet alone can lower homocysteine levels 13%.
There is a raging controversy over lowering homocysteine with nutrient supplementation. The controversy centers on the odd fact that although it is relatively easy to significantly lower homocysteine levels with supplements such as folic acid and B6 and B12, this has not lowered the risk of heart disease. This is odd indeed but the research is well controlled and appears both valid and reliable. As a result, if you test high for Methylation we recommend you focus on lowering it through diet modifications.
We do want to add one fact here. High homocysteine levels also predict a variety of other disease states as well as increased risk of fractured bones in the elderly. While vitamins might lower blood circulating levels of homocysteine quickly but not facilitate the fast repair of cardiovascular damage done earlier, the vitamins that lower homocysteine might have a more rapid functional effect on things like bone strength.
Tomorrow we will talk about inflammation as a risk factor in heart disease.
Methylation is the attachment of a methyl group to another organic compound. All living organisms use methylation as a biochemical trigger switch to turn certain processes on and off. For example, when a specific gene in your DNA undergoes methylation, it will go from inactive to active. Methylation is a necessary and beneficial part of human biochemistry – until it happens at abnormal levels. Unfortunately, this can be true in up to 50 percent of the population. When methylation gets out of control, the risk for heart disease increases dramatically.
The test for methylation is a simple blood test for homocysteine level. Homocysteine is created internally from the amino acid methionine. Elevated homocysteine levels indicate that the methylation processes are not operating properly and that there is an increased risk for heart disease.
While many physicians believe that homocysteine levels below 11 are normal, we believe that if your homocysteine test levels are above 8-9, it is important that you undergo a few immediate lifestyle changes including dietary changes. Since red meat and fowl have high levels of homocysteine they should be avoided or eliminated. Since fish, fruits and vegetables have low levels of methionine they should be added. Research demonstrates that a vegan diet alone can lower homocysteine levels 13%.
There is a raging controversy over lowering homocysteine with nutrient supplementation. The controversy centers on the odd fact that although it is relatively easy to significantly lower homocysteine levels with supplements such as folic acid and B6 and B12, this has not lowered the risk of heart disease. This is odd indeed but the research is well controlled and appears both valid and reliable. As a result, if you test high for Methylation we recommend you focus on lowering it through diet modifications.
We do want to add one fact here. High homocysteine levels also predict a variety of other disease states as well as increased risk of fractured bones in the elderly. While vitamins might lower blood circulating levels of homocysteine quickly but not facilitate the fast repair of cardiovascular damage done earlier, the vitamins that lower homocysteine might have a more rapid functional effect on things like bone strength.
Tomorrow we will talk about inflammation as a risk factor in heart disease.
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