LONGECITY

I've been reading a bit about methylation patterns and it turns out that I have quite a bit of the symptoms for undermethylators. Among those are obsessive compulsive behaviours, depression, previous major substance abuse, mucous production and rhinitis. I've also had an excellent response to SSRIs and apparently all those things fit the profile of an undermethylator. I also need to use a corticosteroid nasal spray in order to keep my nasal airway open, if I don't use it breathing through the nose can be severely compromised at times.

I see a lot of recommendations for supplements here but I'm finding a hard time seeing the complete picture and am wondering if people are actually seeing results from this kind of targeted supplementation or if it is just another fad?

So my questions are to those who have also displayed some of the symptoms of under- or overmethylation or have tested positive and have tried to fix their symptoms by supplementation.

So which symptoms of under-/overmethylation did you have previously and how did supplementation affect them?

Which supplements did you find to be effective and which did you find to be ineffective?

And also, if you were using antidepressants or allergy-related drugs or other drugs to combat methylation-related symptoms, how did supplementation affect your need for medication?

I hate when dudes say this in my posts, but with this one I gotta say that there have been millions of posts about this and title searching methylation will yield days worth of reading.

The idea is to lower homosysteine levels and this can be done with methylfolate, p-5-p, and under close supervision, sam-e. Methylcobalamin is not supposed to be used by undermethylators but I've had a lot of success with it, which makes me question the theory. I was a bit low in methylcobalamin and folate so I would understand why they help, and sam-e helps with the functionality of a wide range of monoamines and so that would help with depressive symptoms, and in theory, is an important part of the methylation cycle. I found this to be very effective. If you have a lot of indifference, mildly feminine characteristics, or signs of depression still, you may want to look into Zinc. Zinc deficiency can also hinder the absorption of folate which can cause all sorts of issues, and was one of the root causes of my inability to "grasp" things.

I think its just more wise to check levels first. Get a nutrition panel done. Get a zinc tally (only like $5), which is supposedly more accurate than blood tests. Otherwise you can trial/error P-5-P, methylfolate and CAREFULLY trial sam-e starting at low doses. Apparently it has made some people here manic, however it's been a godsend to me. If you do supplement zinc, you have to start watching copper levels because Zinc will deplete copper, and copper also depetes Zinc, but you don't have to worry about that for a while if you are deficient.

@onescrew I think we should still try our best to address fellow posters. When my mental capacities were limited there was a shitload of info but I didn't know where to start.

I hate when dudes say this in my posts, but with this one I gotta say that there have been millions of posts about this and title searching methylation will yield days worth of reading.

I've used the search function and looked for answers, but I did not find them.

If you know of some threads where I see these questions answered, I would appreciate it if you could point them out to me.

I see a ton of threads telling which and what supplements to take, but I don't see much about people posting actual long-term experiences and I haven't seen much science at all about the "under/over-methylator theory".

I just want to see that people who have had the same symptoms as me which seem to be typical for such "undermethylators" and have actually achieved long-term benefit from supplementation. To me, a lot of supplements "feel" like they're working for one or two weeks and then stop working completely.

If this under/over-methylator theory is indeed correct and is in fact some abnormality in people's biochemistry, then it would make sense that people would see long-term benefit from supplementation.

The idea is to lower homosysteine levels and this can be done with methylfolate, p-5-p, and under close supervision, sam-e. Methylcobalamin is not supposed to be used by undermethylators but I've had a lot of success with it, which makes me question the theory. I was a bit low in methylcobalamin and folate so I would understand why they help, and sam-e helps with the functionality of a wide range of monoamines and so that would help with depressive symptoms, and in theory, is an important part of the methylation cycle. I found this to be very effective. If you have a lot of indifference, mildly feminine characteristics, or signs of depression still, you may want to look into Zinc. Zinc deficiency can also hinder the absorption of folate which can cause all sorts of issues, and was one of the root causes of my inability to "grasp" things.

I think its just more wise to check levels first. Get a nutrition panel done. Get a zinc tally (only like $5), which is supposedly more accurate than blood tests. Otherwise you can trial/error P-5-P, methylfolate and CAREFULLY trial sam-e starting at low doses. Apparently it has made some people here manic, however it's been a godsend to me. If you do supplement zinc, you have to start watching copper levels because Zinc will deplete copper, and copper also depetes Zinc, but you don't have to worry about that for a while if you are deficient.

@onescrew I think we should still try our best to address fellow posters. When my mental capacities were limited there was a shitload of info but I didn't know where to start.

Thank you for that post, very useful.

I don't have any feminine issues, but I did start supplementing a low dose of zinc because it's cheap and I see a lot of people here use it for one reason or another.

How long have you been using SAMe? Has it provided you with long-term consistent results?

The idea is to lower homosysteine levels and this can be done with methylfolate, p-5-p, and under close supervision, sam-e. Methylcobalamin is not supposed to be used by undermethylators but I've had a lot of success with it, which makes me question the theory. I was a bit low in methylcobalamin and folate so I would understand why they help, and sam-e helps with the functionality of a wide range of monoamines and so that would help with depressive symptoms, and in theory, is an important part of the methylation cycle. I found this to be very effective. If you have a lot of indifference, mildly feminine characteristics, or signs of depression still, you may want to look into Zinc. Zinc deficiency can also hinder the absorption of folate which can cause all sorts of issues, and was one of the root causes of my inability to "grasp" things.

I think its just more wise to check levels first. Get a nutrition panel done. Get a zinc tally (only like $5), which is supposedly more accurate than blood tests. Otherwise you can trial/error P-5-P, methylfolate and CAREFULLY trial sam-e starting at low doses. Apparently it has made some people here manic, however it's been a godsend to me. If you do supplement zinc, you have to start watching copper levels because Zinc will deplete copper, and copper also depetes Zinc, but you don't have to worry about that for a while if you are deficient.

@onescrew I think we should still try our best to address fellow posters. When my mental capacities were limited there was a shitload of info but I didn't know where to start.

Thank you for that post, very useful.

I don't have any feminine issues, but I did start supplementing a low dose of zinc because it's cheap and I see a lot of people here use it for one reason or another.

How long have you been using SAMe? Has it provided you with long-term consistent results?

I've been using sam-e for 1-2 months, but I don't use it anymore. In the past, as soon as I stopped supplementing with the methyl-doners, I could feel the depressive symptoms kick in within 2 days, so I think that was because my levels were still low. Yes, the sam-e has provided me with consistent results and reached its peak after a few weeks of usage. I've never experimented with high doses because of possible risks, and actually tapered off a few weeks ago. The effects of sam-e seems to last and since taking sam-e I haven't really reverted back to pre-sam-e state. It's provided me with a very smooth mental feeling, and improved concentration issues. It improved a lot of cognitive issues as well, most notably memory. My energy levels also shot up, but that's because I was very depressed.

The idea is to lower homosysteine levels and this can be done with methylfolate, p-5-p, and under close supervision, sam-e. Methylcobalamin is not supposed to be used by undermethylators but I've had a lot of success with it, which makes me question the theory. I was a bit low in methylcobalamin and folate so I would understand why they help, and sam-e helps with the functionality of a wide range of monoamines and so that would help with depressive symptoms, and in theory, is an important part of the methylation cycle. I found this to be very effective. If you have a lot of indifference, mildly feminine characteristics, or signs of depression still, you may want to look into Zinc. Zinc deficiency can also hinder the absorption of folate which can cause all sorts of issues, and was one of the root causes of my inability to "grasp" things.

I think its just more wise to check levels first. Get a nutrition panel done. Get a zinc tally (only like $5), which is supposedly more accurate than blood tests. Otherwise you can trial/error P-5-P, methylfolate and CAREFULLY trial sam-e starting at low doses. Apparently it has made some people here manic, however it's been a godsend to me. If you do supplement zinc, you have to start watching copper levels because Zinc will deplete copper, and copper also depetes Zinc, but you don't have to worry about that for a while if you are deficient.

@onescrew I think we should still try our best to address fellow posters. When my mental capacities were limited there was a shitload of info but I didn't know where to start.

Thank you for that post, very useful.

I don't have any feminine issues, but I did start supplementing a low dose of zinc because it's cheap and I see a lot of people here use it for one reason or another.

How long have you been using SAMe? Has it provided you with long-term consistent results?

I've been using sam-e for 1-2 months, but I don't use it anymore. In the past, as soon as I stopped supplementing with the methyl-doners, I could feel the depressive symptoms kick in within 2 days, so I think that was because my levels were still low. Yes, the sam-e has provided me with consistent results and reached its peak after a few weeks of usage. I've never experimented with high doses because of possible risks, and actually tapered off a few weeks ago. The effects of sam-e seems to last and since taking sam-e I haven't really reverted back to pre-sam-e state. It's provided me with a very smooth mental feeling, and improved concentration issues. It improved a lot of cognitive issues as well, most notably memory. My energy levels also shot up, but that's because I was very depressed.

Very interesting, thanks. I might just try SAMe and see how it works, but I wonder how it would affect my sertraline dosage which is currently 100mg/day.

Jesus, this thread is old...

Still gonna give it a try - I just started taking SAMe, and 200mg as well as 400mg (at once) work fine. What would be the max daily dose from your guys experiences, and what are risks of overdosing?
Even with 400mg it just gives me a mild, subtle boost that last for a few hours. So I'm thinking about taking 600mg or even 800 mg daily.. Would that be way too much? Can less be more with this, as is the case with many other supplements?

Mayo Clinic:

SAMe may cause a hot sensation and itchiness of the ear, nausea, vomiting, dry mouth, heartburn, blood in the stool, anorexia, mild diarrhea, stomachaches, slight constipation, increased thirst, increased salivation, urinary frequency, intolerable bowel symptoms, gas, and decreased appetite. Anxiety, insomnia, hypomania, hostility, elevated mood, psychoactivation, headache, suicidal ideation, hyperactivity, a reduced need for sleep, and bursts of energy have also been reported.

Not that these are common, but I suggest you look out for them as you titrate your dose upward.
1600 mg daily is the highest dose generally used, but higher doses have sometimes been used without reported ill effects. Without adequate levels of B vitamins, particularly folate, SAM-e use can lead to high homocysteine levels, and consequent coronary issues over time. If you have the MTHFR genetic polymorphism, methylfolate supplementation would be wise, or perhaps avoiding SAM-e altogether.

Some people with MTHFR polymorphisms have reported that the use of 5-mthf (methyl folate) is an effective anti-depressant for them, and can cause feeling of euphoria.
Edited by maxwatt, 19 June 2013 - 12:23 PM.

Not that these are common, but I suggest you look out for them as you titrate your dose upward.
1600 mg daily is the highest dose generally used, but higher doses have sometimes been used without reported ill effects. Without adequate levels of B vitamins, particularly folate, SAM-e use can lead to high homocysteine levels, and consequent coronary issues over time. If you have the MTHFR genetic polymorphism, methylfolate supplementation would be wise, or perhaps avoiding SAM-e altogether.

Some people with MTHFR polymorphisms have reported that the use of 5-mthf (methyl folate) is an effective anti-depressant for them, and can cause feeling of euphoria.

Thanx, im gonna give Methylfolate supplementation a try!