​What is HOMOCYSTEINE?

Homocysteine is an amino acid and a marker of inflammation, but it also increases when the body doesn't get enough nutritional support.

The normal range is 4-15 μmol/L (micromolar per litre), but the optimal level is below 7 μmol/L.

A person with deficiencies in folate, vitamin B6, or vitamin B12 have increased levels of homocysteine in the blood.

If left untreated, high homocysteine levels, above 12 μmol/L, is a risk factor for heart attacks and damage to the brain.

Homocysteine comes from food sources that have the amino acid methionine like nuts, beef, lamb, cheese, turkey, pork, fish, shellfish, soy, eggs, dairy, beans.

Methionine is converted into homocysteine, which is then converted back to methionine or cysteine with the help of vitamin B12, vitamin B6, folic acid and amino acid betaine.

What is VITAMIN B12?

Vitamin B12 or cobalamin is a water-soluble vitamin. Methyl-cobalamin is the active form to use.

The normal range is 200-900 pg/mL (picograms per milliliter), but the optimal range is 500-1500 pg/mL.

Up to 10% is lost in cooking.

Food sources are lamb’s liver, sardines, oysters, egg yolk, fish, beef, kidney, cheese and milk.

Plants do not contain B12 because they have no cobalamin-dependent enzymes.

Bacteria and algae synthesize B12, which then enters the food chain. Human intestinal bacteria also synthesize B12, but this is not absorbed much.

What is VITAMIN B6?

Vitamin B6 or pyridoxine is a water-soluble vitamin. Pyridoxal-5-phosphate is the active form to use.

The normal range is 25-50 mcg/L (microgram per litre), and the optimal range is 25-50 mcg/L.

Plant foods are not much affected by cooking, as they contain the most stable pyridoxine.

Food sources that contain the highest concentrations are organ meats, beef, chicken, pork, salmon, wholegrain products, legumes, eggs, vegetables, bananas and nuts.

What is FOLIC ACID?

Folic acid or vitamin B9 is a water-soluble vitamin. Methyl-folate is the active form to use.

The normal range is 2-20 ng/mL (nanograms per milliliter), but the optimal range is 10-25 ng/mL.

Food sources include cabbage, spinach, asparagus, broccoli, sprouts, mushrooms, legumes, nuts and fortified cereals and organ meats.

Cooking destroys it up to 100% as it is sensitive to heat, light and air.

In 2012 a study assessed 50 cases of recurrent miscarriage.

It was found that miscarriage rate in patients with high HOMOCYSTEINE was 26.6% compared with 11.4% in patients with normal homocysteine. High homocysteine was associated with 2.5-fold increased risk of miscarriage.

Patients with deficiencies in VITAMIN B6, VITAMIN B12, and FOLATE tend to have elevated serum levels of homocysteine.

Following treatment with vitamin B6 10 mg, vitamin B12 1500 mcg, and folic acid 5 mg daily, taken during pregnancy or only the first trimester, homocysteine levels decreased by 37%.

​References

Braun, Lesley, and Marc Cohen. Herbs & Natural Supplements: An Evidence-Based Guide. Vol. 2. 4th ed., Churchill Livingstone Elsevier, 2015.

Koda-Kimble, Mary Anne. Applied Therapeutics: The Clinical Use of Drugs. 9th ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2009.

Vander, Arthur J., et al. Human Physiology: the Mechanisms of Body Function. 8th ed., McGraw-Hill, 2001.

Bredesen, Dale. The end of Alzheimer's: The first program to prevent and reverse cognitive decline. Penguin, 2017.

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