High Mushroom Intake, High Homocysteine?

Summary

In this video, the speaker shares their personal experience tracking homocysteine levels over the years, highlighting the age-related increase in homocysteine and its potential impact on all-cause mortality risk. They explore various methods of lowering homocysteine, including supplements like trimethylglycine, folate, vitamin B12, and amino acids, and present the results of their experiments. The speaker also discusses the role of mushrooms, protein intake, and nicotinamide in influencing homocysteine levels. Ultimately, the video provides valuable insights into personal biohacking experiments and the quest for optimizing health biomarkers to minimize aging risks.

Takeaways

• 😀 Homocysteine levels increase with aging, from around 6-7 micromolar in youth to 11-12 micromolar in those over 80 years old.
• 😀 Higher levels of homocysteine are associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality (ACM).
• 😀 Even low levels of homocysteine, starting from 1-2 micromolar, are linked to a significant increase in mortality risk.
• 😀 The goal is to keep homocysteine levels as close to youthful levels as possible to reduce health risks.
• 😀 The speaker's personal data shows an age-related increase in homocysteine from 7.1 micromolar in their 30s to 10.3 micromolar in recent years.
• 😀 The speaker attempted to lower their homocysteine using trimethylglycine (TMG) or betaine, but it had no effect based on their personal testing.
• 😀 Vitamin B12 supplementation has a significant correlation with lower homocysteine, but also negatively impacts other biomarkers, making it unsuitable for optimization.
• 😀 Serine, combined with vitamin B6, can reduce homocysteine by converting it into cystathionine, but this also did not have a significant effect in the speaker's trials.
• 😀 Mushroom intake, particularly with high amounts of nicotinamide, may increase homocysteine levels, based on the speaker's data and external studies.
• 😀 Protein intake is significantly correlated with lower homocysteine, with higher protein intake linked to reduced homocysteine levels, independent of other factors like mushrooms.

Q & A

What is the relationship between homocysteine levels and aging?

Homosysteine levels tend to increase with aging. In the script, data shows that while the average homocysteine levels for young people (12 years old) are around 6-7 micromolar, these levels increase to 11-12 micromolar in individuals over 80 years old.

How does increased homocysteine affect mortality risk?

Higher homocysteine levels are associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality (ACM). A meta-analysis of six studies with nearly 28,000 participants shows that as homocysteine levels rise, so does the risk of death from all causes, even at low levels as low as 1-2 micromolar.

What was the author's personal experience with homocysteine levels?

The author tracked their homocysteine levels for over 20 years, observing that in their early to mid-30s, the average level was 7.1 micromolar, which is considered youthful. However, after a 10-year break from testing, their levels rose to an average of 10.3 micromolar over the last six years, which is closer to age-expected values.

What is the effect of trimethylglycine (TMG) on homocysteine according to the author's experience?

Despite the common belief that TMG (trimethylglycine, also known as betaine) can reduce homocysteine, the author’s personal experimentation with 4 grams of TMG per day did not show any significant impact on reducing their homocysteine levels.

How does folate and vitamin B12 intake affect homocysteine levels?

Folate and vitamin B12 are crucial in converting homocysteine into methionine. However, in the author's data, increased folate intake did not show a significant correlation with reduced homocysteine. On the other hand, vitamin B12 intake was significantly correlated with lower homocysteine levels.

Why did the author stop using high doses of vitamin B12?

While higher doses of vitamin B12 (up to 1,000 micrograms per day) significantly correlated with lower homocysteine levels, it also negatively impacted four other biomarkers, which the author didn't want to compromise. Attempts with lower doses (500 and 300 micrograms) did not show a meaningful effect on homocysteine levels.

What alternative methods did the author explore for reducing homocysteine?

The author explored using amino acids like serine in combination with vitamin B6, which can convert homocysteine into cystathionine, and subsequently into cysteine, which is important for glutathione synthesis. However, increasing serine intake up to 6 grams per day did not show any significant effect on homocysteine levels.

How does protein intake relate to homocysteine levels in the author's data?

The author's data indicates that higher protein intake is significantly correlated with lower homocysteine levels. In one of the tests, the author increased protein intake by 15 grams per day, which resulted in a reduction in homocysteine.

What role do mushrooms play in the author's homocysteine levels?

The author found a significant positive correlation between higher mushroom intake and increased homocysteine levels. Mushrooms contain nicotinamide, which can elevate homocysteine levels. However, when the author reduced mushroom intake, they observed a decrease in homocysteine.

How did the author's experiment with reducing mushroom intake affect homocysteine levels?

When the author reduced their mushroom intake from 250 grams per day to 95 grams per day, they observed a reduction in homocysteine levels, suggesting that high mushroom consumption, particularly the nicotinamide content, might have been contributing to the elevated homocysteine.