Frontline Health

#087 - Methylation Matters: The Hidden Key to Your Health

• Troy Duell

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Feeling tired, foggy, moody, or dealing with unexplained health issues? Your body's methylation process might be the hidden culprit. This critical biochemical cycle occurs millions of times per second, affecting everything from your mood to your fertility to your heart health.

Troy takes us deep into the science of methylation, explaining how this fundamental process works like a biological clock. Starting with methionine (found in protein), your body creates SAMe—essentially a delivery truck distributing methyl groups throughout your system to support DNA repair, neurotransmitter production, and countless other functions. When this cycle breaks down, the consequences can be far-reaching.

The MTHFR gene mutation emerges as a key player in methylation problems. Present in about 50% of people with depression and many struggling with fertility issues, this genetic factor impairs your ability to process certain B vitamins. But there's good news—you can bypass this roadblock with the right forms of supplementation. Methylfolate, methylcobalamin, and pyridoxal-5-phosphate can directly support your methylation cycle even if your genetics aren't cooperating.

Modern living presents numerous challenges to optimal methylation. Environmental toxins, alcohol, stress, and even our supposedly "clean" diets (which are less nutrient-dense than in previous generations) all impact this crucial process. Through simple interventions like targeted supplementation, reducing toxic exposure, eating methyl-donor rich foods like leafy greens, and managing stress, you can take control of your methylation and potentially resolve chronic health issues at their source.

Ready to stop chasing symptoms and address the root cause? Listen now to discover how supporting your body's methylation could transform your health and vitality from the inside out.

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Evan Patrick:

Today on the Frontline.

Troy Duell:

Health Podcast Earlier. 50% of patients who are depressed typically have MTHFR. We know that it affects fertility. We know that it can affect after birth those who had cleft palates. They tend to have a higher likelihood that their mother was someone who had the MTHFR gene mutation. So it affects all kinds of things and we know that it's linked to a lot of cardiovascular issues. Because of the increased homocysteine levels it seems to make the endothelial lining of our blood vessels a little bit more brittle and cause some cardiovascular damage.

Evan Patrick:

Welcome back to the Frontline Health Podcast, where we share health news, tips and insights to help you elevate your health and your life. I'm your host, evan Patrick, and with me is our founder and CEO of Centurion Health, troy Duell. How are you doing, good man? How are you Doing well, excited to talk about an often overlooked topic in functional medicine, which is that of methylation. If you're feeling tired, foggy or moody for no clear reason, this episode is going to shine a light on what might be going on under the hood. But before we get into the science, troy, can you explain why methylation matters and why it's becoming a popular topic of conversation today?

Troy Duell:

Yeah, I mean, methylation affects so many different areas of our health and I think that's the biggest issue. We know that it affects people who are suffering from fertility issues, chronic illnesses, mental health issues, and really what we need to do is kind of step back and go back to the basics, because normally what we're doing in medicine is trying to treat the symptoms and what we really want to try to do is treat the root causes of what's going on. So if that tends to be methylation, I think that's where we need to step in and really start attacking those problems at the source and increase fertility rates. Start attacking those problems at the source and increase fertility rates, reduce that chronic illness and do so many of those things that we're trying to do with treating the symptoms and really get to kind of the source of what's going on.

Evan Patrick:

You're so right, troy, and it's exciting that so many people are beginning to take a proactive approach to their health and to try to get ahead of these problems before they happen. To add on to that, I've heard stories of so many people who have these unexplained health issues and seemingly like issues that just came out of nowhere. They have chronic fatigue, maybe they have chronic pain, insomnia, brain fog. They're constantly getting sick. They feel anxious or depressed. Whatever the case may be, could it be that for many of these people, what they're actually dealing with is poor methylation?

Troy Duell:

You know that's a great question and in many cases I think that is true and I honestly think that that probably should be the starting point for healthcare, instead of an afterthought, which tends to be the issue currently. It tends to be an afterthought. So we know that if you have fertility issues, we've talked with fertility specialists and experts that have said if you support the methylation cycle and do a better job of that, it would probably take care of 50 to 60% of the patient load that they're currently dealing with. And we also know that studies have shown if you're depressed, over 50% of those patients suffer from some type of methylation issue and have that going on. So, yeah, I think it can certainly help. Is it going to be the silver bullet that takes care of everything for everybody?

Troy Duell:

No definitely not, but I think it is probably the main starting point that we need to get to within medicine for sure.

Evan Patrick:

Why do you think methylation isn't looked at first?

Troy Duell:

I think a lot of it is because we're trying to treat symptoms. We're not necessarily going after what is the root cause. Because the truth is, if we have a symptom and we're suffering from it, most of us want to go in and we want to have it taken care of right away. And I think some of that is on us and some of that's on the physicians that we go to, who are trying to treat symptoms because they see benefit for their patients from that standpoint. But it just turns into a long cycle of continuing to take these medicines over and over.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah, and that's tough because I have to imagine and I've even heard stories of people coming in and they expect their physician to serve them as a customer instead of a patient and they want that kind of the customer is always right type of attitude from their doctor and so their doctor does what they can do to sort of appease their patient.

Troy Duell:

Yeah, and it's difficult. I can imagine, as a physician, having a patient come in that is feeling miserable. Maybe they've taken time off from work so they don't want to send them away empty-handed. They don't want to send them away saying you know, this is something that you could solve on your own, because then there's really no need for a physician in those standpoints. So you're working yourself out of a job in many of those cases.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah. So to get into the science a little bit, methylation sounds like something that's super technical. What are we actually talking about when we talk about methylation?

Troy Duell:

Well, methylation is really a simple process. All we're talking about is adding a methyl group, which is a carbon atom and three hydrogen atoms, to another molecule, and then it may sound like it's not such a big deal, but this is something that happens millions upon millions of times per second in our body in order for us to actually function. So it helps us with DNA repair, it helps us with our neurotransmitters and so many other things. So it is an extremely important piece of what's happening in our body on a second-by-second basis.

Evan Patrick:

So it's not, like it sounds, just a chemistry lab process. It's how your body actually stays balanced.

Troy Duell:

Absolutely so. Methylation affects our detox. It affects how our genes are actually expressed within our body. It affects, like I mentioned, the neurotransmitter production, which means it regulates our moods. It helps with depression, as we've already talked about, and we know that it also affects cardiovascular health. So it is a huge, huge piece of the process to stay healthy and stay at equilibrium, if we can.

Evan Patrick:

So can you walk me and our listeners through this process? Where does it begin?

Troy Duell:

Think of I like to think of methylation kind of like a clock. So at the 12 o'clock position you've got methionine. So methionine is a protein that we typically get through our meats, and from methionine it interacts with an enzyme in our body called S-adenosylmethionine synthase Just a fancy word for an enzyme that creates this issue, or creates a process in the body that breaks down methionine to where it can add a methyl group to SAMe, and then from SAMe it becomes the greatest methyl donor in our body and SAMe then helps produce that DNA. It helps produce the RNA, the neurotransmitters and everything else that goes on.

Evan Patrick:

So SAMe is kind of like a delivery truck handing out methyl groups.

Troy Duell:

That's right. So it is giving off these methyl groups and then from those methyl groups it turns into homocysteine and from homocysteine it either gets broken down into cysteine, so that SAMe if you're thinking of the clock, you have methionine up at the top, you have SAMe at the 3 o'clock position and then at the 6 o'clock position you've got homocysteine that either gets flushed out of the body and turns into cysteine gets flushed out of the body and turns into cysteine or, at the nine o'clock position, homocysteine combines with folate and methylfolate and methylcobalamin in order to turn back into methionine and start that cycle all over again.

Evan Patrick:

Okay, so that's when things go right. What happens if this process gets disrupted?

Troy Duell:

The whole process breaks down and slows down, so you're no longer producing the neurotransmitters you need, which leads to that depression. You're no longer able to develop within your body the ability to stay fertile, which is where infertility comes from. Fatigue starts to take place and you get that brain fog. So all of that starts to take place and typically where we're finding that happen is when homocysteine is trying to turn back into methionine. So you have this buildup of homocysteine levels because you're not getting the methylfolate or the methylcobalamin that your body needs in order to break down homocysteine.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah, it really is mind blowing just to think about how many different aspects of your health this process impacts. So this is impacting everything from mood to memory.

Troy Duell:

Absolutely so. Methylation turns norepinephrine into epinephrine. It supports the synthesis of dopamine, serotonin and even melatonin, which all can affect our mood and our sleep so huge.

Evan Patrick:

So what factors affect whether the methylation cycle is running smoothly or not?

Troy Duell:

Great question. One of the biggest things is our intake of B vitamins. So we know we need to have B6, B9, which is folate, and B12, but they can't be your basic over-the-counter type vitamins. They need to be bioavailable, they need to be methylated so your body can actually use them. The second thing is alcohol. We know that alcohol and environmental toxins in particular really start to break down our methylation and can interfere with that methylation cycle. And the final one is genetic. So MTHFR, which stands for methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase, is actually an enzyme that some people have a genetic mutation which keeps us from being able to use that enzyme in our body and it slows that whole process down. And the only way to bypass that is to get the right forms of vitamin B in your diet or through supplementation.

Evan Patrick:

And some of our listeners might be familiar with that MTHFR piece when it comes to fertility. Maybe they've been told they possibly have MTHFR and that's why they're having a hard time getting pregnant, or something along those lines but that affects other aspects of their health as well, Absolutely so.

Troy Duell:

We know that, like we mentioned earlier, 50% of patients who are depressed typically have MTHFR. We know that it affects fertility. We know that it can affect after birth those who had cleft palates. In fact, after birth, those who had cleft palates, they tend to have a higher likelihood that their mother was someone who had the MTHFR gene mutation. So it affects all kinds of things and we know that it's linked to a lot of cardiovascular issues because of the increased homocysteine levels. Increased homocysteine levels it seems to make the endothelial lining of our blood vessels a little bit more brittle and cause some cardiovascular damage.

Evan Patrick:

So even if you're eating well and you're getting nutrients in your diet, like those methylated B vitamins that you mentioned earlier, genetics might still throw a wrench in things.

Troy Duell:

Absolutely so. Genetics are really the key driver with this homocysteine thing. There are certain things we can control, which is our diet and how we supplement and avoiding certain environmental toxins. But the one that we can't control is our genes. And if you have this MTHFR gene mutation you can't avoid it. But you can start to supplement and understand the things that you can do to kind of take control of your health and know that if you supplement with some methylfolate or methylcobalamin then you can bypass that issue even at that point.

Evan Patrick:

So is there any targeted support that can help people sort of optimize this cycle? I know you mentioned the methylated B vitamins and I think you said before that those kind of bypass when people do have MTHFR that's preventing them from breaking down those homocysteines or just having different issues related to that. Is it true that those methylated B vitamins can bypass that? It is because it's basically like a bridge.

Troy Duell:

So we know that what MTHFR gene mutation does is it keeps the body from being able to break down the folic acid that we take in our diet. So the way that you bypass that is give your body what it already needs in the form that it already needs, so you don't have to break that down and it allows it to get on there. So or get into your body and create the effect that we're we're hoping to have.

Evan Patrick:

So what be?

Troy Duell:

what would be that targeted support that you would recommend that would help people optimize methylation, yeah, I think, for for Centurion Health in particular, we've developed a product called Puralor CI which provides those active B vitamins. But the truth is and I'd love for anybody who's listening to take Puralor CI, especially if they have an MTHFR gene mutation. But the truth is, if you go out and you find a methylfolate and you find methylcobalamin and you get pyridoxine 5-phosphate, which is the broken down version of B6, that will go a long way in helping you get to where you need to go.

Evan Patrick:

So what would you say to someone out there who's listening, who says I eat a healthy diet, I'm getting all of the nutrients I need? Stop trying to sell me your snake oil.

Troy Duell:

Well, you know, I can appreciate that statement because the truth is, in a perfect world, that would certainly be all we need, which is to eat right, to make sure that we're avoiding those toxins in the environment, so our body is working the best it possibly can.

Troy Duell:

But we know that, unfortunately, our diet now, even if we're to eat at the healthiest and we're eating organic and we're eating clean, that not all of those nutrients that we thought we were once getting are as nutrient, or those foods that we're getting in are not as nutrient dense as they once were. So we're not getting as much of the nutrients as we're hoping, even if we're eating clean, um, and knowing that it doesn't matter what you eat, um, and you can eat as clean as possible and get yourself set up to be at the right spot. So what we're saying and suggesting is it's not going to hurt to supplement. We're not saying that this should be the only thing that you do, but it should be a supplement, which is exactly what supplements were designed for to help push you over the top, to help ensure that you're getting all the nutrients that you need in order to overcome any issues of MTHFR or any environmental toxins that you may come across.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah, and it was so mind-blowing to me when I first learned that our foods are not as nutrient-dense as they once were here in the US. You were the first one to kind of educate me on that. I had a conversation recently with a farmer who was talking about that very same thing. I was listening to another podcast where somebody was talking about that, and so I think it's interesting that people are starting to realize that. You know, we do have an elevated need for supplementation because these vitamins that were once rich in our foods that we were growing, now for different reasons our topsoil being depleted, different farming practices they're not as nutrient-rich as they once were. So supplementation is kind of a necessity when it comes to specifically methylated B vitamins.

Troy Duell:

Yeah, I don't think you can go wrong with supplementing, because even if you supplemented and you were having the best diet in the world, our bodies will still respond well to getting more of that good stuff in our bodies and if we don't need it, typically we just get it out of our system. So it's not something that we hold on to Very, very well. Impossible to overdose on things that you're supposed to have in your body anyway.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah, so what advice would you give to someone who's dealing with infertility, chronic conditions or mental illness, or anyone who wants to improve their methylation to see if it can help them improve their overall health?

Troy Duell:

That's a great, great question. I really think there are probably three recommendations that I would go with. First, optimize your B vitamin intake. So make sure you're getting the methyl folate, make sure you're getting the methylcobalamin, make sure you're getting the pyridoxal 5-phosphate and get those core nutrients that are needed in the methylation cycle. And from there I would say kind of.

Troy Duell:

The second recommendation is to reduce that toxin load. So does that mean doing away with alcohol? Probably, if you're, especially if you're having an alcohol or a drink every day, reduce that, avoid those environmental toxins that you may have. So we know the mold exposure, other things along those lines can actually decrease the methylation cycle that's going on. So avoid mold and really start using those non-toxic personal care and even cleaning products and change your diet.

Troy Duell:

So start eating those vegetables that we know will help support that. So that means green leafy veggies are number one on the list. Your cruciferous vegetables are some that you need to go after. So get after that. And then recommendations of using the sauna and other salt baths, because we know that saunas can help pull some of those toxins out of our body. And then the final thing would be certainly to manage your stress and get plenty of sleep, because we know that poor sleep depletes our B vitamins and messes up our methylation cycle, as well as increased stress. So if you can manage your stress by increasing your faith or time spent in prayer or meditation, then that's always a good way to do it as well.

Evan Patrick:

Yeah, Thanks, Troy. That was super insightful and to our listeners. If you've been stuck in a cycle of unexplained fatigue, stress, brain fog, it might be time to explore your methylation status.

Troy Duell:

Yeah, and I would always recommend going to a doctor, getting tested, if you can, and then take those steps that we've talked about throughout this podcast to really support your body and give yourself a little bit more ownership of what's going on and don't feel like you have no control over this process. That's right.

Evan Patrick:

Thank you for listening to this episode of the Frontline Health Podcast by Centurion. Go out and take ownership of your health today, because you are your best health advocate. We'll see you next time. If you enjoyed what you heard today on the podcast, please consider leaving us a review. We would love to hear your feedback and connect with you further. You can also follow us on Instagram X, tiktok and YouTube, and for safe, effective and affordable health and wellness products made in the USA, visit wwwcenturionhealth. Thanks for listening. We'll see you next time.