Last week, we talked about the importance of protecting your DNA and how specific nutrients, like B Vitamins, can help. Today, we want to discuss a metabolic process and a byproduct that significantly impacts cellular health – methylation and homocysteine.
You’ve probably not heard of either one; however, their impact and how they’re tied together uniquely are important to understand. Your diet has a significant influence on both the methylation process and homocysteine.
What are methylation and homocysteine?
Methylation is a key biochemical process that occurs millions and maybe even a billion times a second (I would call that warp speed)) and is critical, even essential, for the proper function of almost all of your body’s systems. Methylation helps repair your DNA, reduces inflammation, and keeps the cellular detoxification system functioning optimally. The methylation process helps recycle two very powerful molecules, glutathione (GSH) and methionine from homocysteine.
Homocysteine is a harmful protein formed during the methylation process in our bodies. In particular, The Methionine Cycle. High homocysteine levels can cause neurological conditions, stroke, heart disease, and cancers. Homocysteine can be converted to important non-harmful compounds with the proper nutrition.
For the methylation process to function optimally, it is very dependent on Selenium, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), Vitamin B12 (cobalamin), Vitamin B9 (folate), Choline, and the compound betaine. Betaine is an amino acid glycine derivative converted from the essential nutrient Choline. If you have low levels of these B Vitamins, homocysteine levels build because they can’t be converted to Sam-e or GSH without them.
How Does Homocysteine Affect Our Health?
As homocysteine levels increase, this can damage our DNA and increase cellular inflammation across our body. Higher homocysteine levels are associated with increased heart disease and cancer in some studies and not as much in others.
However, the other studies consistently showed that HDL (heart protective cholesterol) levels were low when homocysteine was high, while Folate, B2, B6, and B12 levels were low. We know adequate levels of these nutrients lower homocysteine levels, thereby increasing cell and heart-protective HDL cholesterol levels.
The relationship between cancer and homocysteine levels provided similar results in studies for different cancers. It isn’t very clear. They find an association between breast cancer and lower B6, B12, and Folate levels, but not necessarily because of elevated homocysteine. Still, lower levels of these nutrients are linked to a greater risk of breast and other cancers.
If you want to protect your DNA and reduce your risk of cancers and heart disease, make sure you are getting adequate levels of Selenium, B2, B6, B12, Folate, and Choline. Every day, have several servings of a variety of colorful foods from the garden to reduce your risk of disease and illness.
Almost every health organization’s common theme is to “increase our intake of vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains and nuts and seeds and reduce our intake of processed foods, red and processed meats.”
Another way to increase your intake of these B Vitamins and nutrients is to supplement your diet with Vive Shake. To see how this whole-food nutrient-dense supplement will help you, contact us today at info@viveshake.com or 877-878-3009.