Dr. Albert Mensah, MD, discusses cutting edge (and affordable) ways to test for undermethylation, plus its mental health implications, nutraceutical solutions, pharmaceutical options and much more.

Dr. Mensah is the founder of Mensah Medical, an international biomedical clinic for patients diagnosed with autism, ADD, ADHD, OCD, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, bipolar disorder, anxiety, depression and eating disorders. He treats patients with advanced nutrient therapy, an effective and natural alternative to prescription medication.

Answering the need for specialists with backgrounds in both traditional and natural medicine, Dr. Mensah founded Mensah Medical after serving as a primary physician at the original Pfeiffer Treatment Center. While at Pfeiffer, he received extensive training from Dr. William J. Walsh, PhD, founder and former director of the Walsh Research Institute and a pioneer in methylation and mental health research. 

Dr. Mensah works closely with the Walsh Research Institute, updating therapies and protocols, initiating cutting-edge paradigms and serving as a clinical instructor for its International Doctor Training Program.

3:38 - What is methylation?

7:00 - Serotonin production, activation, recycling and reprocessing

9:03 - Whole blood histamine blood marker and its implication in methylation. The personality characteristic often seen in those with high whole blood histamine (undermethylators) and the advantages and struggles undermethylators are prone to

12:26 - How and why there is an inverse relationship between methyl and histamine

13:53 - How Dr. Mensha approaches a treatment plan for a high histamine individual

15:56 - Can a genetic polymorphism (SNP) for histamine skew the whole blood histamine levels that would otherwise correlate to methylation?

18:03 - Are whole blood histamine levels genetically determined or can they be altered if one “fixes” their undermethylation issues?

19:06 - Why do many undermethylators do well on the supplement SAMe and don’t do as well when folate and/or folic acid is added to the SAMe?

20:25 - Folate/folic acid – methylating agent or demethylating agent? Or both??

22:30 - Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) and the biochemical rationale behind this class of drugs

25:53 - Why undermethylators tend to be hyper responders to SSRIs

27:06 - Folate – select serotonin re-uptake enhancer? Folate contraindicated in undermethylators despite contrary popular belief? 

29:45 - When and why to take and not take folate, irrespective of methyl status, particularly during pregnancy

30:42 - The potential issues with haphazardly taking folate and/or folic acid during the entire pregnancy due to folate being a “double agent”

31:35 - How the increased use of folic acid has contributed to global epigenetic changes

32:03 - Dr. Mensah further explains how folate/folic acid is a “double agent”

36:06 - Is methyl-folate as effective as it’s thought to be, and why?

41:21 - Which type of B12 is best for undermethylators and balanced types? Methylcobalamin, Cyanocobalamin, Hydroxocobalamin?

Methylation Pathway Visual Aid 

SSRI 101 Visual Aid

Mensahmedical.com

Listen to the Accompanying Episode Here: Methylation: A Primer to My interview with Dr. Albert Mensah

For questions or requests for future show topics, email ROTC@rootofthecause.net.