While it can be a very confusing subject, one way to view the methyl cycle is to see like the flow of traffic through a city. Instead of cars on paved roads we have molecules moving along biochemical pathways – but the same rules apply. Just as a city can have excellent streets with free-flowing traffic , so too can a body have balanced biochemical pathways with high levels of nutrients available. Taking this example further, we can see that the same issues which would decrease the flow of traffic in a city would cause problems for our own biochemistry. If a city had something blocking the main roads, then drivers would spend more time just trying to get from point A to point B. Important deliveries would get behind schedule and pollution would increase as all those cars sat bumper-to-bumper waiting. It’s the same inside the body. If a person’s body has slowed methylation pathways, then it cannot run important cellular processes at full speed. When the supply of methyl groups is somehow reduced either by internal problems or dietary deficiency, toxic molecules build up and dysfunction soon results. Anything that slows the delivery or internal production of methyl groups to the body will cause the body to function and a lower level. And who wants that?
Methylation Cycle associated with Down’s Syndrome and CBS upregulation.
Some readers may recognize that methylation and the methyl cycle is also referred to in some studies as “one-carbon metabolism” which is no accident. The word methylation is named according to the rules of organic chemistry where different compounds are named based on how many carbon atoms are attached. The word methyl- means one carbon, ethyl- means two carbons, butyl- means three, propyl- means four, etc. So when we talk about methylation we are talking about a one carbon molecule with three hydrogen attached to it – CH3. This simple molecule is like the currency that runs the economy of our body. Without money, or methyl groups, in circulation the commerce of the body can slow or come to a halt all together causing widespread problems.
You might be wondering just how important is the methylation cycle? These methyl groups are absolutely critical for life inside the human body. As we examine the various systems of the body it will clear how methylation is a key component to health living at any age. The methylation pathway must deliver methyl groups to every cell in the body otherwise our health will suffer. In fact, methylation is so important that it plays a role in everything from miscarriage, Down’s Syndrome, and autism to cardiovascular disease, stroke, depression, cancer, and more. Contact Dr. Rostenberg today to find out more about this important biochemical process and how it may be affecting your health or the health of someone you love.
