Today, we’re going to talk about the difference between your methylation design, as in your methylation status, versus your methylation performance. Many people have been studying and discussing methylation, but most are not aware that there are environmental and epigenetic factors that can (and do) impact whether or not our bodies are performing in accordance with our methylation design.
Testing processes for methylation can involve measurement of a number of factors. At Mensah Medical, we use the whole blood histamine test to determine methylation status. High levels of histamine indicate undermethylation, while low histamine signals overmethylation. Many people, patients and practitioners alike, diagnose methylation status based entirely on symptoms. Some people are saying, “Gosh, my symptoms are very much like an undermethylator. I’m perfectionistic. I’m a bit of a control freak. I’m extremely gifted academically and just pushed it performance. I do everything perfectly and yet, I have anxiety depression. So I must be a classic undermethylator.” On the other side, someone might say, “Well, you know, I am really very creative. I’m just a person who loves music and the Arts, and I don’t like following rules and I’m not very regimented, so I just think I’m a classic overmethylator.” Okay, that’s great, but you still need to take a histamine test to confirm your actual methylation status.
Unfortunately, some of our patients do all the right things in determining their methylation status – they work with a doctor, they take a histamine test, etc. Yet when they try to actually treat themselves, or someone is treating them based upon those test results, they find that maybe they’re not responding very well to the treatment protocol that’s been given. They are quite certain of the biochemical testing results, and so they are very confused. While these patients may have indeed uncovered their methylation designs, they are unaware that there is a difference between design and performance.
So what, exactly, does that mean? Well, every engineer on the planet knows that you may design a complex machine like ship or a car one way on paper, but it may not exactly perform the way you designed it in real life. Well, your system, of course, is a beautifully designed machine. You may be designed to be an undermethylator. But there can be a glitch in the system that inhibits a treatment protocol or stops it from working very well because there are some factors of which you are not aware. Maybe you have a glitch in the conversion of one enzyme to another that allows methylation to occur. So even if you’re taking all the right nutrients that would normally help somebody improve their condition, you might not actually see results. It is possible that your body may not be actually performing the way it is designed.
Overtreatment might also be a factor. Let’s say you are an “internet scientist” looking to treat yourself all on your own, and you’ve read online that using folic acid is a great way to treat overmethylation. So you take lots and lots of folic acid, and you change your diet to include lots of dark green, leafy vegetables, and you’re eating them all the time. You may not realize it, but you may have turned yourself into a functional undermethylator – your system now has been over treated and now it is functioning more like an undermethylated system. In other words, you overshot the mark. Your body is actually undermethylaTING, even though you’re designed to be an overmethylaTOR. You went from extreme to extreme.
The same is possible in the “opposite” methylation status direction. You can be a classic undermenthylator who has done everything properly and by the book. You have read all the scientific studies and research, and as a result, you’ve been taking tons of methylating products – methylated B12, methylated this, methylated that, methylated everything – yet you’re not doing as well as you should. It is possible now that your body may be overmethylating because you have introduced an excess of methylating agents.
Now, to add more confusion, some patients maintain the “positive” characteristics of their methylation status, even after overtreatment. Undermethylators are still marvelously creative, or undermethylators are still highly perfectionistic and overachieving. But, despite the treatment, many of the negative symptoms remain. There is still anxiety and/or depression, or maybe it’s actually worse than it was before or maybe you’ve swung to the other side. Depending on the chemistry and depending on the challenges, whether they’re enzyme challenges, genetic blockages, or even just the wrong combination of nutrients, the system can be affected in multiple ways. Despite who you are designed to be, your body may not actually function in that capacity. That is the difference between methylation status versus methylation performance. This is why it is very important to work with a professional in this process of treating your methylation status – you cannot always accurately determine, on your own, how your body is actually performing at any given time. I know many people use their symptoms as a methylation status determinant, but doing so does not always accurately reflect how your body is performing at that moment. Doing so does not take into account the several epigenetic factors that might have your body performing in a way that is not in keeping with your genetic methylation makeup. Your doctor might suggest that you take a methylation profile test that can measure your current methylation performance as opposed to just revealing your genetic methylation status. Talk to your doctor; do the right testing; find out not only what your methylation status is, but also how your system is performing in the moment, and how well it is responding to your nutrient therapy or treatment process.