[I] made a massive diet change yesterday, replacing 80 to 90% of my diet – a change that frightened me as much or more than going vegan. It began Saturday night with a few hours of research and cross-referencing of the low-sulfur/thiol food list and the high-folate food lists. Sunday morning continued with two hours of shopping at Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage, followed by a nap and then 3 to 4 hours of cooking followed by near total exhaustion.
You’ll see the product of my work in the photo at the right which was my breakfast this morning. For someone who has been eating large quantities of vegetables for many many years, this is an enormous challenge because the food list I am working with is way too short.
Now, here’s how I got here.
- I don’t have even the slightest doubt that I have mercury and other heavy metal toxicity.
- Mercury is known to cause intolerance of thiol containing foods in which my diet was very heavy for many years.
- Mercury is hypothesized to block the methylation cycle causing functional B-12 deficiency.
- B-12 deficiency is well known to cause fatigue, concentration difficulties, and memory impairment (among lots of other bad things) which I have in spades.
- Overcoming methylation dysfunction is aided by avoiding both folic acid supplements and high-folate foods.
- At the time that I became very sick in 2007, I was eating extraordinary quantities of broccoli, a very high sulfur food. As much as 4 to 5 pounds a day.
- I stopped eating broccoli long ago but continued eating a very high sulfur diet including lentils almost around-the-clock.
- There is a substantial overlap between the high-folate food list and high-sulfur food list, so I combined them to create my own elimination list.
What exactly does Andy Cutler say about thiols?
Sulfur is an atom in many food molecules. Sometimes it is in the form of a thiol, and sometimes in another form that can be converted to a thiol. Sulfate and sulfite are the only forms that seems not to convert to a thiol. People with too many thiols running around stir up their heavy metal burdens and are in essence more poisoned than they have to be given the amount of metal present. High thiols also activate the allergic part of the immune system. Glutathione is one of the body’s major thiol containing molecules.
Not wanting to be more poisoned than I need to be, I took the plunge! I’m trying the low-sulfur and methylation diet at the same time. There may even be some scientific basis for this according to METHIONINE AND METHYLATION: CHICKEN OR THE EGG:
First, there’s this:
Methyl group production in the methionine cycle is intimately linked to other portions of the system, namely to folate and sulfate metabolism. These pathways cannot be isolated from one another. They supply each other with substrates and work together like gears, so if one cycle isn’t moving in a progressive direction, the other two may not be either.
And then concerning sulfate metabolism:
Excess sulfur generates excess sulfur breakdown products like hydrogen sulfide, sulfite and other toxic molecules. It can also result in reduced glutathione production because of unbalanced and non-optimal function of the transsulfuration pathway. Sulfur is able to directly activate the stress/cortisol response that can lead to elevations in adrenaline and depletion of dopamine and norepinephrine. A constant state of fight or flight produces sympathetic versus parasympathetic overload and a wide range of secondary effects in the body, including changes in the magnesium/calcium ratio, decreased levels of serotonin and dopamine, effects on the methionine cycle via BHMT pathway substrate levels, changes in GABA/glutamate balance, as well as potentially depleting important glucose metabolizing enzymes and causing blood sugar fluctuations.
And ultimately concerning sulfate metabolism and detoxification of heavy metals:
When functioning optimally, the transsulfuration pathway generates glutathione (GSH). GSH is the body’s main antioxidant and heavy metal detoxification agent.
My summary: Methylation and transsulferation work together — so excess dietary sulfur can interfere with methylation. Excess dietary sulfur also creates toxic molecules, disrupts sugar control and neurotransmitter production and may interfere with heavy metal detoxification. Very, very bad!
In order to make this combined elimination diet work, I’m being forced to eat foods with a higher glycemic index than I like. Well, I actually like high-glycemic foods but have avoided them for years because of my poor sugar control. So, now I’m eating yams, spaghetti squash and acorn squash for example. The easy way to use this list is to eat lots of meat which I like. The challenge for me is to include enough vegetables to stay healthy (ha ha). Note, a low-sulfur diet has also been used by others to fight inflammation.
What I fear the most about this diet is the lack of foods I can easily use for snacking. I need to snack all the time in between meals to keep my energy up and brain functioning. But without beans or nuts, I’m not sure what to do. Coconut flakes are the only packaged food on the list that is easy to make snacks with, but I need something to combine with it to replace seeds and nuts…
One thing I don’t understand yet is how the low sulfur list was put together…
Because of the challenges of this diet and because of the changes I’ve made to supplements, I felt that I should do an easy round this week, so I am doing DMSA-only at four hour intervals.
Here’s what I’m eating now – listed as combinations that I enjoy:
- bacon and spaghetti squash
- acorn squash and butter
- yams covered with cinnamon and mixed with coconut flakes
- chicken thighs with skin and little chunks of ginger
- artichoke hearts
- beef brisket
- roasted turkey
- diced zucchini sautéed in butter with sweet corn
- lamb chops
- ground turkey
- coconut flakes mixed with cinnamon and cayenne pepper
- shrimp
That’s about it, I don’t have much variety and hope to add a couple more things. Definitely will try butternut squash soon.
Here are the relevant lists I’m working with:
I’m trying to figure out my issues as I have mercury problems and noticed I do better on a low sulphur diet. I may have a big problem with folic acid, but you seem to lump folic acid, which is synthetic and causes problems for many, with naturally occurring folate. Is there a reason why or are you mistaken? Many people take metafolin by solgar with is a natural folate. I had been taking it for a few days and felt ok but last two days I consumed some folic acid and feel awful so trying to figure it all out.
It seems Folinic acid is the form contained by green vegetables but you can also buy supplements of that form. When we say folate we mean methylfolate which you don’t find in vegetables. Folinic acid can cause problems for people with certain genetic methylation defects whether it comes from supplements or vegetables.
Upon further reading i see that some vegetables contain folinic acid, which may cause issues for some people. Folic acid is synthetic.
Natural occurring forms are folinic acid and methylfolate, while folic acid is synthetic.
Thanks for your article, “Sulphur Free at Last”. I’m trying to piece together my diet and supplements that might be involved in affecting my breathing (asthma symptoms, when I don’t have asthma). And sulphur is involved, I think, and I’ve also noticed that if I increase my methylation supplements (especially TMG) it helps this. Thanks.
Have you read the book “no sulfites” by Rick Williams?
It is notably mentioned that vitamins B1 (thiamin) and B7 (biotin) contain sulfur dioxides:
http://www.learningtarget.com/nosulfites/chronic.htm
Worth mentioning since you supplement them both.
Thanks Fred, have not heard of that book but I may try stopping the Biotin for a while since I ran out last night:)
Hi. I just wanted to suggest something. I have Fibromyalgia which my doc thinks is caused by mercury. I’m on the low sulphur diet now, when I eat a sulphur food my neurologia kicks up and even my gabapentin won’t stop it. I tried DMSA but it hurt me too much. I am trying IMD Detox Program and I think that might be easier for people. My doc recommended it. It’s by Quicksilver and I think it’s supercharged silica. Anyway its supposed to bind to mercury and remove it. I would say be careful of the dose. I can only take about a quarter scoop a day and they are tiny scoops. Things are going very slowly for me but at least I’m doing something. I’m glad to hear that you are better.
Easier may not be the right way to go Suzie – have you looked into Dr. Cutler’s frequent dose chelation? I know many people have healed with it…
Hi. I’m a not confused and hoping you can help. My father (born 1918 and long dead) was apparently “sulphur allergic”. I don’t know much more than that. But I don’t think it is just an amalgam thing cos I am pretty sure he was from boyhood. I am now suspicious I am thiol sensitive. I have had two sons born with tongue tie and multiple food intolerances, though never quite got to the bottom of them. My second is 2 months and I think his issues are due to this. I have been eating a lot of thiols and also have amalgams. I am breastfeeding. I suffer from mood swings and painful hip joints, grind my teeth abd have occasional headaches without obvious cause. I have a tongue tie. I started a low thiol diet yesterday. If things improve then I will do this long term. But I am worried that excluding high thiol foods will leave me deficient in cysteine, methionine or the building blocks to make other essential chemicals in my body.
It seems likely I have thiol sensitivity and a methylation disorder. And that because I have amalgams and have these defects, I have amalgam toxicity. Is that right? So the amalgams didn’t cause the defects but they are the cause of the symptoms? If this is a long term diet, surely I need to take supplements…? Which ones do you recommend? And how do I get myself and my babies tested for these disorders. Many thanks.
I wouldn’t worry about the long-term right now… if you have amalgams and you grind your teeth, that’s a real recipe for disaster. getting the amalgams out is the first step. You need to find a dentist that specializes in safe amalgam removal.
Hi, I have a genetic methylation defect and hectically struggling to overcome this. I also have hashimotos autoimmune disease. There is so much conflicting info regarding sulphur rich foods and I am getting so confused. Does anyone have a SOLID list of low sulphur foods? I live in south africa and I am receiving treatment but no-one here really has the foggiest on how to treat this condition.
I had to remove the sulfur list because it was copyrighted by Dr. Cutler – that list is here: http://www.livingnetwork.co.za/chelationnetwork/food/high-sulfur-sulphur-food-list/
Hi! I have talked with a pharmacist and she recommended the CBS test with Dr. Roberts. I have CLL, and I’ve also done the Al-cat blood test, which came back with many foods on the sulfur list. So I am wondering if there is connection. I know I can’t change my DNA, but maybe I can change how my liver detoxes! I feel great and have no signs of sulfur issues. But the CLL is causing my WBC to go higher, it’s at 50 right now. I was diagnosed in Sept of 2013 but had high WBC counts two years previous. I have really learned a lot from your blog! Thanks for the info! I eat clean and gluten free. Most people that get CLL are in there 70-80, my grandma had this at 81 yrs. I am 55. So trying to figure out all that I can and what caused this. They say no reasons can cause this, but I’m not so sure! Thanks!
thanks for writing Kim, best wishes!
-Eric
Can you provide more information on this “CBS test with Dr. Roberts”? It is hard to find information online with CBS and Roberts in your search! I am thinking I have a sulfur intolerance because I do not tolerate eggs, garlic, cauliflower, and several other high-sulfur foods, but I have no idea if this is the only problem. I have variable extreme fatigue (I either feel fine or like I will fall over, not much in-between) and fairly regular nausea. Thanks!
Hi Liffa. Do you feel that Dr. Roberts is helping you. I also have my 23andme results and have following Dr. Roberts and Yasko protocol for several weeks now. I have CBS (+/+). I live in Texas but am originally from Ohio. I am considering calling him for a consultation. How much does he charge to treat a patient remotely?
Thanks, Doug
Doug, you should call for current rates. At first I needed an hour. Now we tag up for 15-30 min phone consults. There is no program, you just pay as you go and as you desire to keep going. I find that if I write up a thorough but concise report (1-2 pages) and get that faxed ahead of time it makes the phone consults very productive. He reads them, which amazes me ! Then after your consult he will send you a thorough report with his recommendations clearly outlined. I put the phone on speaker and record the consults on my laptop so I don’t have to take notes. I also have questions written down. He is a very good communicator. Just try to resist the urge to get off topic about other things and let him problem solve with you. You can almost hear his wheels turning in his brain as he tries to figure out what you need so I try not to interrupt his train of thought and save my questions to the end. Good luck!!
Hi Liffa. Are you having a good experience working with Dr. Roberts? I was considering working with him also. I am following all of his recommendations and taking most of the basic nutritional support supplements for step 1 in Yasko’s program. I just found out 4 weeks ago that I had the CBS problem and also had been eating a lot of broccoli and greens which are high in sulfur. I was clueless that this was a problem until I got the 23and me testing done.
Eric, did you feel a big difference when you only ate the foods on the low sulfur list and foods not on the high folate list? I am considering following your lead. Great site by the way.
Thanks, Doug
thanks Doug, I did not feel a huge difference, just a mild improvement I would say. Maybe because I did not go all the way by avoiding zucchini. I still avoid the high sulfur foods however.
Doug,
In a word, YES!
He is a real scientist, does not give up, treats me like an individual with my own set of peculiarities, and is very thorough. His office staff is also wonderful. Can’t recommend him highly enough. I do phone consults, and drove to Toledo once (insurance covered that visit) to get a more thorough evaluation. He orders thorough blood/urine tests and uses the information and tells you what he is thinking it all means. I wish all doctors would take a lesson from him in how to involve the patient in figuring out their unique health challenges – he treats me like a member of the team – duh! That’s how it should be, right? Good luck!
Liffa
Liffa, how much does Dr. Roberts charge for his program when doing phone consultations? Does he charge per call or for the whole program? I appreciate any insight.
Please may I respectfully draw your attention the ‘high folic acid’ foods you have posted. They are not high in ‘folic acid’ they are high in Folate. Folic acid is a man-made chemical that cannot be converted into active folate (which needed by all cells for methylation) by up to 60% of people with the genetic defect MTHFR. In fact, fortification of foods with it is banned in Denmark and Sweden. You can find out more about this on mthfr.net. Since I had my genome analysed at 23andme,com and implemented the protocol that addresses my mutations, my sulphate and sulphite issues have resolved. It’s been a long hard journey of discovery but it was worth it!
Thanks Barbara, I have fixed the error – Congratulations on solving your sulfate problem!!
I just had 23andme results back with little explanation on how to address my mutations and I’m feeling hopeless and overwhelmed. Who analyzed your genome and helped you figure out what to do?
I know the feeling Natalie. Take it slow, there’s no rush. Sterling’s app is a good place to start: http://www.mthfrsupport.com/reports-consults/order-reports/
Hi Natalie,
I know how you feel. I am a patient of Dr. James Roberts, a cardiologist in Toledo who works with methylation. He has helped me completely turn my health around in a year’s time. I think he saved my life actually because I was ready to jump off a bridge….joking, but not by much. Anyway, he will do phone consults. You can find his methylation information at Heartfixer.com. I’m within driving distance, so I went to see him in person last fall for one visit, and it was a good thing to do also, but he doesn’t require it. His staff is wonderful, and I can tell you that he took my 23and Me and figured ME out! Good luck!
I see dr Roberts also he is wonderful. Did you do metal detox with him? The edta?
I’m always sad to find i’ve come late to the party. This post is a year old so I’m not sure of a response, but I plan to dig into this site late this evening. Meanwhile, I’ve been chelating out heavy metals with ALA (50 mg)/ DMSA (100mg) every 3 hours. I’ve known that I wasn’t having a good experience but it gets worse and worse. I recently found from genetic testing that I have (+/+) CBS C699T. I’m thinking the sulphur-rich DMSA, as well as my diet in high sulphur/thiol foods may be the culprits. I’m thinking of taking a break from chelation until I get the sulphur/thiol eliminated. I see you are still chelating with DMSA though, as listed on your current dosing. Is the idea to eliminate all sulphur/thiol sources with the exception of the DMSA? Thanks for recording your journey.
Those are pretty high doses Misty – if you are having a rough time, you may want to try cutting back until it’s more comfortable. I’m going through something that now too. Yes that was roughly my thinking about the high sulfur foods…
I have the same defect as you and have been sick for the last 7 years. I’m 46 and feel like 86. I’ve been trying to take the metals out for years with no success, but recently found out I too have genetic defect and am not able to rid my own body of sulphur. These issues have caused major issues with digestion/food allergies, neurologic difficulties, and hormone imbalances (even a pituitary adenoma). The excess sulphur is then blocking the methylation pathway. Have you found any product that you can use to help reduce sulphur/sulphite levels besides just reducing it in the diet.
hi Nicki, I’m sorry to hear we have so much in common. How do you know your sulfur is high? I’m wondering what test shows that. What happens when you take methylation supplements?
I don’t know of anything that reduces sulfur but I also haven’t looked for it…
I too have the CBS mutation. It has taken a long time for me to figure this out. I tried supplementing with Alpha Lipoic Acid too soon and had a really bad experience. Once I addressed this mutation with a low sulphur diet and with molybdenum I am now able to take almost anything – even TMG and Same. After I had taken these, I was led to having an Aquadetox session at a local centre and this was only because there wasn’t a massage appointment available. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The amalgam/mercury fillings I had had incorrectly removed several years earlier were eliminated from my brain and body – the evidence was there. I remember stepping out of the centre and feeling completely connected to the Universe and this life for the first time in many years! So impressed was I with this apparent miracle that I bought a detox foot spa on ebay – it cost £35 when the brand new price for the one I bought was £300. The feeling I had has never left me since and I am someone who has tried every pill, supplement, treatment and potion known to Man – well, almost! Of course, I am implementing other measures now in order to keep well – eating lots of organic greens and organic wheatgrass in my smoothie every day in addition to the all natural supplements I am taking to bypass the genetic mutations I have – vitamins, minerals and co-factors to my methylation and detox pathways that I now know are severely compromised due to my genome analysis.
Wwow, what a story. Have you had a hair test? Would be interesting to see what it looks like now…
Interesting note as far as coriander goes… I have been using it, along with parsley, cilantro, and many other herbs and spices, a lot since Vegas, and without noticeable effect (one flake would have sent me wailing prior). For me, there were 2 large factors involved: 1. Removing significant mucoid plaque, and 2. Opening my detox pathways with the laser. One of the things Jack actually put me on was NutraMedix Parsley Detox, something I would have previously not tolerated, let alone benefit from.
Well I don’t know what to say about that other than, it’s too confusing for me and it’s my naptime, lol.
Hello All
Have your total body mercury levels tested. You’d need to eat something that contains sulphur to shake it out of cells & back into your circulation first. Having said that though, If you have silver amalgams or root canal teeth, your blood levels would show mercury without any sulphur intake prior. All symptons of mercury poisoning/toxicity can in at least 1 way liked to the most minor illnesses/conditions then right through to terminal one’s. The only common denominator I have found is mercury! Get it out of the body & more importantly the BRAIN. You cant just detox the body, without doing the brain. Coriander is one of the very few things that can cross the blood brain barrier & draw mercury/heavy metals from there as well. Mercury & its levels in different people will give cause to all conditions. These are sent out as signs by your immune system ALRREADY struggling with its mercury war in the first place.
Coriander is dangerous – don’t use it. Read up about ALA in the chelator section here.
Hi Eric, I was just diagnosed with a sulfur thiol allergy. I’ve had stomach issues for years and was FINALLY diagnosed and I’m slowly getting better. Question for you, can you use canola oil, corn oil, or safflower oil for cooking/baking? I know vegetable oil, peanut oil, soy lecithin, are a no-no but haven’t heard about these other oils. What has been your experience?
Hi Jen, I can’t tell you much about those oils in connection with thiols. The only thing I would like to say is that I believe canola oil is unhealthy. It gives me headaches and when I have researched in the past, came away thinking it was bad for humans. I believe it’s overused and promoted by companies like Whole Foods just because it is cheaper than healthier alternatives. And, let’s call it by its true name which is rapeseed oil.
This site is an absolute gift – thank you!! 🙂
Dude! I’m the same age and had a very similar experience to you. Thanks for your story and blog info.
I lived in a mouldy house, found out I had heavy metals, moved to a new city, but, unbeknownst to me, water supply loaded with lead, and cadmium. I also lived in Japan and ate loads of sushi, cranked up my candida, leaky gut and parasites and had to quit my job from brain fog, fatigue and memory lapses.
I finally found a functional medicine doctor but he put me on 250mg of DMSA to chelate the metals and a large lump formed on my ribs!!
So now I’m trying Cutler’s protocol, but have to divide 250 mg capsule powder into 8 tiny piles, which is difficult. My heart is racing and anxiety, depression and crying jags are insane while on the DMSA—but I’m hoping eventually to feel better.
I’m confused about everyone’s comments regarding sulphur but am loathe to further restrict my already=restricted diet. I’ll have to take symptom notes to see.
Wondering if you have experienced eye problems–floaters? blurriness? I now have cataracts and notice that I get blurred vision after talking on cellphones for more than 30 seconds, but am not sure if it’s from the metals or the candida. Also, I’ve had foamy urine for the last 5 years which seems to coincide with metal toxicity getting worse…..
Best of luck and speedy healing
Cheers
Wow Cris, that’s a lot of coincidence, sorry to hear about it!
I hope you find a way to take smaller doses of DMSA – sure can be a terrible experience when you overdose…
For me the low sulfur diet was not especially helpful. I have eye problems but not floaters or blurriness. I have dimmed vision and very sensitive to bright light. Believe my problems are not typical mercury because of mix with lead.
Thanks for saying hello!
Chris, have you done the 23andme testing? It sounds like you have high ammonia. Certain people, those with CBS and COMT mutations, I think, can’t do DMSA. You may be one of them.
That test could save your life. It did mine. $99 online. http://www.23andme.com. Without knowing exactly what pathways are disrupted and why, you are treating in the blind and may actually make your condition worse.
Mary
I have a homozygous A360A CBS polymorphism (not as bad as the dreaded c699t). I can handle a few days or more of ALA with little problem. I can use urine sticks to judge and also see if my skin starts turning red. DMSA is also not much of a problem though either. The worst thing is straight up sulfonamides and other sulfates in beauty products. Sulfonamides send the urine strips to the top level and after I quit taking them, it takes about a week for it to go back down again. I had trouble with methyl donors at first but am handling them now okay that I have eased my way in with hydroxyl b12, p5p, etc then EDTA chelation IV. (EDTA for gadolinium and lead). Now am doing pretty well on l-methylfolate
I take ALA and EDTA pills before going to hot yoga then take diatomaceous earth when I get home.
here are my polymorphisms
Gene & Variation
rsID
Alleles
Result
COMT V158M
rs4680
GG
-/-
COMT H62H
rs4633
CC
-/-
COMT P199P
rs769224
GG
-/-
VDR Bsm
rs1544410
CC
-/-
VDR Taq
rs731236
AA
+/+
MAO-A R297R
rs6323
TT
+/+
ACAT1-02
rs3741049
GG
-/-
MTHFR C677T
rs1801133
GG
-/-
MTHFR 03 P39P
rs2066470
GG
-/-
MTHFR A1298C
rs1801131
TT
-/-
MTR A2756G
rs1805087
AG
+/-
MTRR A66G
rs1801394
AG
+/-
MTRR H595Y
rs10380
CC
-/-
MTRR K350A
rs162036
AA
-/-
MTRR R415T
rs2287780
CC
-/-
MTRR A664A
rs1802059
GG
-/-
BHMT-02
rs567754
TT
+/+
BHMT-04
rs617219
CC
+/+
BHMT-08
rs651852
TT
+/+
AHCY-01
rs819147
TT
-/-
AHCY-02
rs819134
AA
-/-
AHCY-19
rs819171
TT
-/-
CBS C699T
rs234706
GG
-/-
CBS A360A
rs1801181
AA
+/+
CBS N212N
rs2298758
GG
-/-
SHMT1 C1420T
rs1979277
AG
+/-
That’s interesting Emily! how did you find out that you had Gadolinium and how did you get exposed to it? I just came across this other mention of it. What was it like getting EDTA intravenously?
This is how it was for me. When I had EDTA infusions there was a strong burning pain in the bloodvessels, mostly in the armpits. It subsided after maybe 20-30 minutes. Afterwards, after driving home, I sat in a chair just looking at the wall. Tired is not exactly the word, I was like a zoonked zombie, hardly able to respond. Luckily a friend was there and noticed that “something is wrong with that guy”. Gave me a bunch of vitamin and mineral pills. Within 30 minutes I was okay. So the infusion sucked me dry from something important. The infusion didn’t do anything positive that I noticed. On the other hand, I had 40 infusions of Cysteine/vit-c/Glutathion and that helped immensely. Reduced EHS with at least 50%. I avoid EDTA both as supplement or infusion.
Hi Marsha. I followed some of Jeremy Piven’s story, and unfortunately, though not surprisingly, he quickly became the laughing stock of all of Hollywood. No one believed him. I believe he did chelation IV’s, and *seemed* to recover in less than a year. This also seemed to be the case for Stacey Case, Fox news reporter.
On a similar note, talk radio this morning brought up the one year anniversary of the Newtown, MA school shooting. They talked about Adam Lanza, how he had severe OCD, anti-social behavior, seizures, Asperger’s, and more. Of course, they’re crediting ‘mental illness’ for his behavior… I can only wonder if our modern world will ever wake up to the truth in what’s going on…
Eric,
do you feel like the diet helped you? Can you give an update on how you feel now and if the diet helped? Also do you only have to restrict for three months?
At the time, I felt like the diet did help, although nothing earthshaking. Maybe because I was eating a lot of high sulfur food previously. I have tended to eat large quantities of the same foods. Now I have forgotten mostly about sulfur. My diet is more balanced and I think my digestion has improved also from taking large amounts of probiotics. Now the way I feel is usually determined by what’s going on with my chelation and methylation protocols. Wish I could be more helpful…
Hello Eric:
This will probably be your first post for 2014 and your first wish for a Happy New Year! I sure hope this ends up being better than 2013 for me. I just found out yesterday that I have liver damage. I have no doubt that it is from the mercury.
At any rate, I have been on a low thiol diet for 3 weeks now and a low folate diet for 2 weeks EXCEPT I screwed up 2 weeks ago and used chlorella for 2 days and had beets 1 weeks ago. Wow! What a mistake that was for me. It took me the full week to get over that mess and that is when I had severe liver pain off and on for 2 days. Did anyone else hear suffer any sort of liver damage or any other sort of damage? I’m hoping my liver can recover from that. I know livers have a tremendous capacity to recover from injury. I have a doctor’s appointment next week to go over all of my test results.
I was hoping that everyone that is on this site that is on a low thiol diet could tell me how long they did the diet before they attempted to slowly reintroduce high thiol foods? Did any of you try it only to realize…nope…can’t do it just yet. And then you made another attempt later on?
Did any of you hear about Jeremy Piven getting mercury poisoned a few years back from 20 years of sushi? I guess he was near death. He seems to be fine now, but I don’t know how long it took him to get better.
So, how is everyone progressing in their quest for mercury free health? Are you seeing major improvements? Are their any set backs? The first of this year may be a great time to reflect on how far you have come.
Again, Happy New Year everyone!
Thanks Marsha, and happy new year to you! are you taking any liver support supplements like Milk Thistle? I didn’t know there were any celebrity cases of mercury poisoning… interesting.
Hello Eric and Tara:
Can I take Milk Thistle right now? It is high is sulfur, but not sure about the thiols. See: http://forums.bettermedicine.com/showthread.php/68909-did-milk-thistle-do-something-to-me Check out the original posters complaints and the last two posts. I am using Epsom Salt for both the magnesium and the sulfate since we have a problem with sulfur and sulfite. Sulfate is the readily available form of sulfur. I am hoping this helps.
I believe that my liver damage was done by my eating those 3 beets at one time. It was after that that the liver became painful. It turns out that beets can cause heavy metals to accumulate in the liver which can lead to liver damage. See: http://www.livestrong.com/article/555645-dangers-of-juicing-beets/ (Section on Excessive Consumption. Mercury isn’t listed, but is a heavy metal nonetheless.)
As for Jereymy Piven, yes Tara, he was ridiculed for what happened to him and they basically made light of it. I feel sorry for him. I get the reaction that he got, though, because someone in my life just told me that they do not believe in mercury poisoning. Another person is adament that you can not be mercury poisoned by amalgam fillings. Both of these people suffer from digestive problems. Hmmmm. Funny thing is is that they know nothing about the subject having read nothing about it, but never the less have an opinion on it. These are the people that you cut out of your life if you are going to succeed in overcoming the poisoning with the least amount of stress. At the very least, don’t even bother talking to them about what you are going through and limit your contact with them if possible.
I doubt there’s any possibility that eating just three beets at one time could hurt your liver. Excessive consumption surely means over a long period of time, as in every day for weeks or months. I can’t advise you about Milk Thistle. Can only tell you my personal experience – I was afraid to take it because it’s bitter and I thought it would hurt my stomach. I started with one capsule and worked my way up to four a day, taken with meals and it worked out just fine.
How about olive oil, banana and apples? they are not included in any list.
I have so many things I want to say. I finally reached this website. after all what I went through.
Its so sad. All the health issues that I went through, all the time I wasted, all the money I spent.
And why when you read about mercury detox, those smart people say eat garlic?
Mercola website has a whole article about eating raw garlic to detox mercury. but why?
How about me? and people who are like me?
Hi Norah, I don’t know about those other foods as I have liberalized my diet. Now, I only avoid a few very high sulfur foods. I too spent years wandering in the dark and spent a fortune doing it.
Can’t you arrange this comments stream so it goes in sensible first to last order (like most on web)?
Or do you all actually want it to be mad? Cheers.
Good point Robin, changed!
I have been on a low sulfur diet for a couple of months now. I am now experimenting with introducing sulfur containing foods. Yesterday I had a delicous meal of 2 eggs, bit of cooked spinach, hash browns. (eggs, spinach…) it went well, I felt the same as the day before. Did I feel great? Energized? No…..I had poor sleep the night before so took a short nap. (Is that suspect? who knows?) Today I had cheese on a glutenfree sandwich. fine. OK, the real test would be ….drum roll: broccoli! Will try it soon. But I am not having trouble with these so far. Yippee! I have missed greens and eggs.
you miss out on a lot of good food when you quit sulfur! i started eating one egg a day and enjoy it a lot. still not eating broccoli…
Why no nuts?
At first because they were not on the low sulfur lists, and now because they are high in copper which showed extremely high on my hair test.
One more q. Why is avocado on both the “to eat” and “to avoid” lists?
Avocado is low in sulfur/thiols and high-end folic acid. I’m not avoiding folic acid anymore so I’m back to eating lots of avocados…
One last point:
Here’s Yaski’s resume. You’ll notice she has experience in both allopathic and alternative health approaches….that’s perfect for me. I want the best of both worlds. Anyone with mercury toxicity from amalgams is already taking an alternative approach because most conventional doctors and dentists don’t even believe in it, so I assume we are all on the same page on that one. 🙂
Her education is incredible…magna cum laude and summa cum laude, etc.
Again, it is pretty brazen for Cutler to make these kinds of remarks about her if what Kelly said is accurate, and I have no reason not to believe her.
http://www.dramyyasko.com/resume/
Hi Liffa,
If Yasko is working for you, that’s great. I know of many others who it didn’t work for, including myself, and I know others who have the CBS polymorphism and didn’t improve until they added sulfur. But hey, that tiny sample doesn’t make it scientific.
Having said that, I have to disagree with you. Yasko’s work is not groundbreaking. She jumped into the field on the backs of the researchers whose work was indeed groundbreaking.
Again, it’s not just Cutler who disagrees strongly with Yasko. Here’s a couple of threads where Susan Owens talks about how researchers view her work:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Trying_Low_Oxalates/message/55324
and more on CBS:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Trying_Low_Oxalates/message/104205
Mark London’s review of CBS — Myth or Reality:
http://web.mit.edu/london/www/cbs.html
Good luck on your journey,
Kelly
One more quote from Cutler:
“I don’t think this was done adequately well by Drs. Mullan and Yasko. This is very difficult to do, I’m not criticising them – they appear to be smart, caring people who are trying their best to help those in need of assistance (I’ve met both of them and also find them quite likeable). I just don’t think they have it right yet.”
Thanks for the info Kelly!
I’ll try to digest it over the next few days. However, I want to restate that my labs showed these things before I had ever heard of Yasko, and now that I’m following the CBS part of the protocol they have completely changed, and that’s all I’ve done to possibly explain that.
Also, when I said Yasko’s work was ground breaking, I was referring to her unique Methlyation Cycle application for those with autism, not the general research she has published, etc. And, yes I agree she has taken advantage of others in the field of bio-chemistry whose work has been groundbreakings. That’s why it is hard for me to merely dismiss her theories based on Cutler’s and others’ opinions/comments.
From just a precursory review of London’s remarks, it seems he speaks more to Down Syndrome and assumes everyone has normal livers and kidneys that can process all of this ammonia. With methylation cycle problems, and all that brings to the table, healthy detox systems of course are not going to be the case and I’m wondering if indeed the CBS up regulation problems Yasko identifies applies to that population, which obviously I must be in because as I already said, my particular labs are proving her theory, and I’m starting to feel better. My husband has been keeping a photographic record and you wouldn’t believe the difference month to month….but I still have a long way to go.
I guess where we can get in trouble with many things in life is “one size fits all” approaches. So perhaps they are both right, and comparing apples and oranges is actually what is happening here. I have my unique set of SNPs and organ dysfunction, and this seems to be the right protocol (so far) for me. If it turns out that it is not, I’ll be the FIRST to admit it by the way. We are really having to help ourselves in so many regards, and exchanging information and experience is crucial for those of us with these kinds of problems. 🙂
Also, I just wanted to add this for an interesting anecdote. The dentist that put all this garbage in my mouth as a child and teenager ended up committing suicide when I was in my early 20’s. I remember asking my mom what that was all about and she said that evidently he started getting hand tremors and couldn’t hold his dental instruments any more and didn’t want to live if he couldn’t work. I’ve always wondered if the poor man had mercury poisoning.
Thanks again for the info. I hope you have a good day and start to get some relief from your symptoms soon. I found a great biological dentist relatively close to me, and hope to get the rest of this crap outta my mouth in the near future!
🙂 Liffa
Let me add that while I appreciate that Cutler has personal experience with mercury poisoning, and that he has a PhD in chemistry from Princeton (nothing to sneeze at for sure), Dr. Yasko is from the BIO-chemistry field along with extensive study and research in molecular biology and biotechnology, and is known for her pioneering research in DNA/RNA. And her work with autism is considered “ground-breaking.” You’ll find many who laud and applaud her…and you can’t ignore the difference between chemistry and BIO-chemistry when it comes to working with the human body. She’s also been in this field for almost 20 years so I don’t know where the number 10 years came from?
I think it’s a little much for Cutler to say she doesn’t know what she is talking about on this based on their respective fields of study, and she is merely “well intended” and “doesn’t understand the science.” (based on a former post by Kelly.)
Wow!
I did a quick excerpt from the interview by Dr. Mercola (DM) with Dr. Shade (CS). (You can download the entire transcript or watch the video that I referenced in my last post.) Anyway this comes at about the 1 hour mark. The important thing I think here is the study that was done in Iraq of the mass mercury poisoning it refers to and how some were able to get the stuff out of themselves quicker than others, and the point is that they did it without metal chelators. Anyway, take a look at it and tell me what you think. 🙂
CS: Oh, I know. It is. It’s painful. This is really my favorite aspect of the whole thing. How the body actually works in detoxification. Probably, the biggest myth that’s got to be just destroyed immediately is that mercury will stay in the body until you go in there with a chemical chelator and pull it out, that mercury is never removed from the body and it just builds up forever. That is completely a myth. We’d all be dead if that were the case.
You have a system for moving mercury and other heavy metals out of the body. They may work in different efficiencies for different people or may be totally disruptedin people, but you have a system.
I came out to speak at a conference there in Schaumburg, Illinois that was hosted by Diane Meyer. When she picked me up at the airport, I said, “Well, what do you want me to get across to your audience here? I mean, you got Boyd Haley here, Hal Huggins, and Lee Cowden speaking. You know I’m the new guy on the block. You know what I talk about. What do you want me to get across?” And she said, “I want you to get across to people why one person over here is completely sick from amalgam, and this guy over here is totally fine.”
This is the central problem that we have now in toxicology today, and where we really fail in the mainstream research, and that’s the failure to understand the vast disparity between in and amongst the population in their ability to deal with certain toxins and their ability to detoxify them.
That’s when I showed this slide from the Iraq poisoning that showed some bits of the population getting rid of that dose of mercury in 40 days or at least getting rid of the half- life, getting rid of a half of it in 40 days, other groups taking 100 days, and then another group, a totally different subset of people taking 120 days. What you see here is that the detoxification system working at different efficiencies to different people.
What is the detoxification system? The main, the core of the detoxification system is the glutathione system. Notice that I don’t say, “It’s glutathione.” It’s the glutathione system. Glutathione binds to metals and can move them out of the body, but it doesn’t do that alone. If we look at what the requirements for resistance to metals and effective detoxification (meaning not only the resistance but shuttling them out), you need healthy levels of glutathione in the cells. You need activity of an enzyme that’s called a phase II detoxification enzyme. It’s called glutathione S-transferase. This is an enzyme that’s responsible for prying the mercury off the cellular proteins and linking it together with the glutathione.
Those two parts work. You have the glutathione. You have the glutathione S- transferase. Now you have a mercury-glutathione conjugate in the cell. Now you got to get it out of the body. At the cell membrane, you’ve got active transport proteins or called multidrug resistance proteins. They push that mercury-glutathione complex out of the cell and into the blood. From there you got another one at the liver, a similar one that pulls it from the blood into the liver, and another one that dumps it from the liver into the bile tract to go into the small intestine. You have also got some of these transport proteins in the intestinal walls, pulling from the blood into the intestines. And you have got them in the kidneys as well.
You have to have all three parts of this going. I may have mentioned before that in cell lines where they find high resistance to metals, they have all of these parts working well. If they knock any one of them out, then the cells are no longer resistant to the metal. In our approach to detoxification, we want to optimize top to bottom this detoxification system and this transport chain, so that you are pulling mercury away from the sensitive proteins that it’s bound to and getting it out of the body. Every step along the way has to be taken care of.
DM: All right. Thank you for explaining that, especially debunking that popular myth that mercury is going to be there forever if you don’t do some type of chemical detox.
@ Liffa,
Regarding the Iraq study, Cutler writes about that in his book and says that it is conformation of some sort of genetic component to how well you detox mercury. Also, he writes about how this condition may be more common among people that originate from Scandinavia. This makes a lot of sense and seems to be backed up by the fact that amalgam illness became a big issue in Sweden before it was really a hot topic anywhere else.
Also, nobody is saying that “that mercury is going to be there forever if you don’t do some type of chemical detox.”. What Cutler claims is:
1. Different people are more or less able to detox mercury . If you are less able, mercury builds up in your body.
2. Once you stop the exposure, i.e. remove you bad fillings, most mercury in the body comes out on its own. First it leaves the blood over about three months and the most of the organs dump their mercury over the next 6-12 months.
3. The one place where mercury stays a long time is the brain. There it takes 15 to 20 years for half of it to leave if you do nothing. The Cutler protocol is really about cutting down this time.
This is how I understand it and it also makes sense given my personal experience.
Hi Expat Vikng,
Well it sounds like we are all saying the same thing in some regards?
1. Yasko and Roberts and many others believe getting the methylation cycle fully functioning gets the doorways open for self-detoxification of mercury and other metals, and Cutler agrees that certain people do better than others at detoxifying mercury, and that it is possible to do it. So I’m going to be bold and say the methylation cycle, which is in charge of detoxification and can be genetically defective, might have something to do with that variation from person to person.
2. Roberts says that once the toxic load is reduced, then getting it out through chelation is a good way to get the rest of it out without “torturing you” if it is still necessary. He also endorses and follows Yasko’s model to a T.
3. Yasko, is not against chelating agents either, and thinks that getting the “revolving door” of the methylation cycle unstuck so the heavy metals can start to drain out is the best way to start before trying to get it out other doorways via chelation, and she believes it might not even be necessary for many so why not try gentler approaches first, especially for those of us who are so sick. (I think chelation would literally kill me right now, and I’m being serious about that, not speaking in hyperbole.)
I guess where the disagreement is, is that Cutler thinks Yasko’s methlylation cycle model is wrong, in particular the CBS up regulation, and there’s where I’m going to pick a side until I find convincing contrary information.
First of all, she had help from other genetic scientists in developing this model, and having worked with a world-renowned ground-breaking psychologist for many years, I know how hard it is for the “old guard” to accept new information that seems to contradict or even improve on their current methods/beliefs.
Secondly, her credentials are amazing – she is a scientist, and other researchers have arrived at the same understanding of the methlyation cycle, and condone her model of it.
Thirdly, my own biochemical testing is proving everything that is claimed about the CBS up regulation…I can’t “fix” that data. It’s there in black and white from some of the best labs in the country, and on tests ordered by three different doctors using their own lab preferences…none of which had anything to do with Yasko, all independent of her. They were ordered BEFORE I’d ever heard of this.
So, based on my own experiences with trying to get groundbreaking information from meticulous research and patient trials accepted by those with older theories, seeing the credentials of the others who are in Yasko’s camp on this, and reading about thousands of autistic families who have been helped by her genetic model of methlyation I gotta go with her at his point. 😉
This is a great discussion! Thanks for everyone’s input; I’m really interested in it.
Also, Eric, not forgetting about you…hope you find the answers you need, too, and soon! Be well!
Hi Kelly,
So sorry to hear about how sick you got/are! I’m just about where you are, too.
So you are saying the Yasko method did not help and that you are now worse? But if you are following Cutler, then why are you worse?
Actually Dr. Roberts uses the Yasko method and does chelation (in fact, he is certified to train others to use chelation) and he believes that my body will start to get the methylation cycle up and running first and detox on it’s own and then we’ll discuss chelation if he deems it still necessary.
Also, Dr. Mercola believes the body can do some of the detox and Dr. Shade, the scientist who created the mercury speciation test, which I’m getting next week. Here is a link: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/01/13/mercury-detoxification-protocol.aspx
Let’s keep sharing! Sounds like we all are pretty sick and can use the information exchange! I think there are probably several approaches that can be effective, and even combining approaches may be helpful. For now I’m using Robert’s version of Yasko and I’ll let you know how it goes.
Liffa
PS. Dr. Roberts is also a famous author (endorsed by Dr. Oz, lol) and I totally trust him and he swears by Yasko, so Kelly, I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you. Maybe there are things that have been tweaked that you weren’t able to take advantage of back then??? Were you using her protocol with a practitioner who understood it? It is maddening to try to figure this stuff out on your own, especially when you are soooo sick. Hope you find the right kind of help, no matter what it is! 🙂
Wow, I don’t know about discrediting the CBS thing. It makes a lot of sense when you have it explained by experts and read through the chemistry of it. And Yasko’s patients have had remarkable recoveries as have patients of other doctors who use her protocols – which often include addressing CBS up-regulation.
Eric, have you had the genetic testing? You can do a more expensive version or the 23andME which is only $99. You may have already addressed this in other posts, but I just stumbled onto your blog and haven’t had time to read through much of it yet.
I too am mercury poisoned and have methyl cycle defects, but am using the Yasko protocol under the guidance of Dr. James Roberts in Toledo, Ohio who certainly gives credence and lots of chemistry to back up the CBS up-regulation problem, and my own biochemical testing seems to back up the theories so if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck…. I’m just saying that I’m thinking there IS something to it and it should not be so easily dismissed by someone who says it is all a bunch of bunk because no one can “explain what part makes sense.” I understand it, and I my body seems to think I’m right. lol
Also, don’t know if you realize this or not, but the list of foods you have here (from Cutler’s book I’m assuming) were listed on another forum talking about his book in a really nice way and people were discussing it, and then the moderator took it down because Cutler left a REALLY nasty post about copyright infringement, etc. So I don’t know what to tell you about that….he seems to be a little short fused. At the very least, I think it was very short sighted of him because I WAS PLANNING TO BUY HIS BOOK before he left that post. It was GREAT advertisement for him.
I’m on a low sulfur diet right now, too and am restricting animal protein (per CBS protocols) and it is really hard, but I should start to feel better after about 2 months and then my diet can be more liberalized. I’m using Yasko’s supplements and then will be opening up other cycle pathways one by one, and THEN I’ll start working on getting the mercury out, but according to her (and others’) theories it should start to come out on it’s own, too, and greatly reduce the burden I might have to chelate out later. I have MS type symptoms and CF symptoms too that started 6 days after a dental procedure this past winter. Unreal!
BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!!!!
🙂
Hi, thanks for commenting – I haven’t had any genetic testing yet. There are so many things to spend money on, it will have to wait.
I did watch Amy Yasko’s DVDs but found it difficult to follow. Honestly it seems like my intellectual capacity for theoretical information has reached its limit for now. I would love to have somebody walk me through CBS really slowly, but I think the time is not right yet for me. I personally am not dismissing it, just postponing.
Sorry to hear about the problem you had with Cutler. Don’t let that dissuade you from buying his book… nobody is perfect and one thing I know about Andy is that he has been very generous with his time. Might get a little cranky, but it all evens out.
My food lists don’t come from Andy’s book by the way. It’s more of an amalgamation of lots of different lists I found through research online.
I like your theory about getting methylation going helping with metal detox but I’m in too much of a rush to do one thing at a time:)
Best wishes!
Hi Liffa,
Yes, Cutler can be blunt at times, and in fact that turned me off a few years ago as well, and so I put off chelation — a huge mistake — and instead got the Yasko tests, and followed the methylation protocols and her ‘advice’ — only to get much, much worse. I’m basically homebound now, almost close to bedridden, which forced me to go back and do more research to confirm if what she said was accurate or not. Don’t let his blunt nature turn you off — the more you read, the more you’ll see there is a kind person behind some of the bluster.
I’ve come to the conclusion, after reading not only Cutler’s posts (who by the way says he’s not attacking Yasko…he believes she’s well intentioned, but just doesn’t understand the science), but also Susan Owens, Rosemary Waring, and other sulfur researchers who have been in the field for 30-40 years (compared to Yasko’s 10), and also Mark London — all of whom say she is wrong about CBS ‘upregulation’, especially when it comes to the C677T allele.
Methylation will not detox heavy metals — that’s a fact. It is PART of an overall detoxification system, but again, does not remove mercury or other heavy metals. If your doctor says otherwise, ask him for the clinical research that backs that up.
Good luck. Hope you don’t make the same mistake I did. If I could do anything, it would be to turn the clock back 3-4 years, and get my “life” back. I was disabled back in 2009, but nothing like I am now.
I don’t have the c699t polymorphism but do have the Aa360a one.
I should mention, despite not having the dreaded c699t one, I nearly died from Sulfa as a kid. My knees swelled up so large that they broke open. Almost died.
I had forgotten that the c699t was controversial.
Liffa,
>CFS symptoms that started 6 days after a dental procedure
Sorry this is a late answer but I just found this blog.
and my brain is mush today, so I can’t remember all that you said in your comments in this thread, and whether you have a biological dentist (IOMT is a good source as mentioned elsewhere) but your last sentence caught my attention.
Have you heard of cavitations?
i have recently heard of this, first through phoenixrising forum and then a few other places recently. apparently pockets of infection can form that are basically sealed in, I believe there are a variety of ways this can happen in dental work, and the infections don’t register in blood tests etc, but slew out toxins, and can be a toxic overload on the system and is ground zero for some cfs patients, and if found and cleaned can be a cure for the lucky few.
it needs to be a dentist who knows how to look for cavitations, and I think many if the clean/mercury knowledgable dentists are in that group. might be worth asking them to find someone knowledgable.
https://www.google.com/search?q=cavitation+illness&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari
Hi Delia, yes I’ve heard of cavitations and have an appointment with a biological dentist next month. I’m really looking forward to it, and hope he can tell me more about cavitations and whether I have any.
Update on my health – I have improved exponentially by following the Yasko protocol, and limiting sulfur foods as well as using some of the supplements she recommends. I understand some on this thread have not had those kinds of results, but my symptoms have greatly improved…it’s taken 7 months, and I still have a ways to go to get back to where I was before I got so sick, but I’m very hopeful.
🙂
That’s great on both counts!
i think there will always be some arguing when it comes having chelators and metholators in threads together! There are some strong feelings!
i keep finding it wherever I go, and I just want to find good information so I can figure out what’s fits me best/what sounds most like me.
I think there is merit to both approaches. My doctor uses chelation for some of his patients because they can handle it, however my health had deteriorated so badly, that it probably would have pushed me over the cliff. And I’m still not opposed to doing it sometime in the future if necessary, but the methylation approach is getting me stronger and stronger so it is providing a good foundation for me. Also, testing is showing that I’m excreting some mercury on my own now that I’ve worked on the methylation problems, so maybe that’s gonna be all I need to do after all. And I have to say, that limiting the sulfur foods, keeping a food and symptom diary, and taking daily urine measurements for 4 months now have really given me some hard and fast data to map trends that I just can’t argue with. Sulfur producing foods are NOT good for me, and our theory is it is because of the CBS and BHMT genetic problems I have. (My BHMT variations are actually worse than than the CBS one, by the way.)
Good luck to everyone, no matter what path you take. You really have to feel comfortable and confident about what you choose to do, and do your homework for your particular situation. Dr. Roberts is the perfect fit for me, so that’s the track I’m on right now.
🙂
Glad you found something that works! I’m also getting a lot of mileage for methylation support, so much so that I’m taking a two-month break from chelation while I work on it…
Hi, Liffa – from what I can gather, Andy gripe about genetic testing (CBS et al) is because the advice that comes back is to avoid sulfur containing drugs, especially DMPS. From his point of view, this restriction unnecessarily prolongs the pain felt by suffers of CFS/mercury toxicity/autism, because major chelators are being thrown out of treatment. Based on the fact, DMPS/DMSA/ALA are the mainstay of his work, it stands to reason that he wouldn’t invest in the “genetic approach” and its advocate’s advice.
I think genetic testing is useful. Andy says, for instance, that you have to be careful with methyl donors, including methyl B12m because they might cause aggression. Based on genetics, you could locate this response to COMT (+) or VDR Taq (-). Given there is such a debate about whether you want active forms of B12 or not, I want to know first whether I have dopamine issues before supplementing. I’ve gone for 23andme and look forward to reading the results. I don’t think we should be so dismissive.
Leon
Hi Leon,
The 23andME testing takes about 7 weeks, but is worth the wait, and you get a lot of great health information in it besides methylation cycle issues. The genealogy part is fun, too.
I’m still sticking to my guns on the sulfur issue. When I don’t overeat sulfur, I feel 100 times better. My body is also starting to detox the mercury according to the Quicksilver Testing that I’ve decided to use instead of the provocative testing that 99% of everyone else says you HAVE to do. That simply is not true. I would encourage anyone wanting to have mercury testing that is not so hard on their health to look into it. Some of us are simply too debilitated to go through that – there is such a thing as the cure being worse than the illness, and in my case mercury detox the “conventional” way would have put me in an early grave – I’m convinced of it. My doctor, who uses chelation and provocative testing in addition to Quicksilver, concurs. SOME people can’t tolerate it, so they have to do something else, and I did and I”m so glad I did!
I’m back to working part time, and doing more and more for myself every month. I still have some really crappy days, but I”m making a forward progress and I’m really thankful to have discovered the Yasko protocol and with that comes handling the CBS/BHMT issues by limiting sulfur along with other measures. My regular urine testing bears this out every time…too much sulfur is toxic to me with my genetics. My other testing (such as NutrEval tests through Genova Diagnostics) also bear this out. The data doesn’t lie.
All best!
I don’t understand where you’re coming up with the need to LOWER your folate? Synthetic ‘folic acid’ certainly isn’t good, but folate is essential. Also, some if not most of the foods listed as high-glycemic, are easily made low glycemic by eating them with a little fat.
And finally, regarding the CBS issue — according to Cutler, it’s NOT an issue at all. It’s been misinterpreted by Amy Yasko, among others.
Here’s his latest post about CBS, from the FDC yahoo group:
“Nothing you hear on the web from ‘alternative’ sources about CBS relates to reality. Ignore all of it. Much of it is dangerously wrong and if you actually believe it you will hurt yourself a lot. It is all so random and unrelated to reality there isn’t any way to work through it and ‘explain what part of it makes sense,’ because none of it does.”
Thanks for commenting Kelly – I deleted the mention of CBS. As for the food sources of folic acid, some people have a paradoxical deficiency reaction from folic acid in their diet. I updated this FAQ with more citations for it. I wanted to be sure of a good methylation startup and I got it, so now I am reintroducing folic acid foods starting with avocado, asparagus and a few others. So far so good!
I did not know about combining high glycemic foods with fat but, I eat everything with fat anyway:)
I’ll be eager to hear how you’re feeling with the diet change. For me, what I’ve learned so far is that it’s pretty much gotta go on a food by food basis. I, too, had referenced and cross referenced all the food lists, until I was left with nothing to eat. I thought I was going to either go crazy or starve. I’d spent a fierce year and a half on The Body Ecology Diet (anti-candida), prior to chelating, only to be left feeling like death by the time I found chelation. Since then, my food list has become even more restricted, but it doesn’t necessarily follow either the sulfur or thiol lists. What I see as greatly problematic with the lists given is that fact that many of the foods listed aggravate candida (ie. yams, sweet potatoes, squash, etc.). Putting out one fire to fuel another… And then to rely heavily on animal proteins often provides another whole set of issues. For me, with high arsenic, I have to avoid carbohydrates, but I also have to steer clear from high protein diets (per AI). As if we’re not mad enough already, dietary tolerances are a $%^#. I’ve been living on salad, a few vegetables, avocados, almonds, coconut oil, flax oil, hemp and chia seeds, and some organic chicken on the days I chelate. I’m sicker than sick of eating these same bland foods day in and day out, and looking forward to the day I can eat something new and fun…
My heart breaks for you Tara! It is very hard to live with such a restricted diet…
I’m also finding myself standing in front of the refrigerator hungry and unable to find something that I didn’t just eat 45 minutes ago or two hours ago or four hours ago. But, I’m very committed to staying on this diet for a while, maybe a couple months. My metabolism feels calmer, a little bit less hypoglycemic. I’m not urinating as frequently and there’s this feeling it’s hard to describe related to urination that also I would say is calm. Don’t know what’s going on, but I’ll stick with the diet even if I know I should not be eating yams and squash.
Am delighted with the bacon, lamb, turkey, chicken, beef and butter.
Whenever I think about balancing the competing treatment needs, I’m going to give priority to the chelation, methylation and transsulfurration and less to adrenal and hypoglycemia issues which I consider downstream. I’ve even thought that the adrenal problem is best left at 80% or so because it allows me to easily know how I’m responding to various changes in supplementation. I realize that’s easy for me to say based on my symptoms as I can’t know what yours are like.
Hang in there!
Wow, you are on a roll! big project!
“What I fear the most about this diet is the lack of foods I can easily use for snacking. I need to snack all the time in between meals to keep my energy up and brain functioning”
Have you tried coconut oil? That should have zero GI and works really well for many (including me)when it comes to keeping up energy and brainfunction. Again, there is a lot written but in practical terms you can just start by taking one teaspoon in you coffe. Let it dissolve and drink up.
Again, I got racing heart the first few times but is soon went away. Then you can work up to a tablespoon. For me, this eliminates all hunger for 4-6 hours and I also used to have serious issues with bloodsugar. Many people do 3 tabelspoons a day and that is recommended by the guru of coconut oil, Dr. Bruce Fyfe. I have even done a few fasts on coconutoil and it works in the sense that there is zero feelings of hunger or variable bloodsugar. But it get’s really boring after a few weeks…. Mostly I do 1 tablespoon in the morning.
Cutler is also a fan of this and reommends it, often for it’s anti candida effects. If you want to try it, it should be extra virgin coconut oil.
I have consumed a lot of coconut oil mixed in with my lentils over the years but stopped around six months ago when I started getting acid reflux from it. I will give it another try! Thanks for the suggestion:)