Hello everyone. Welcome back. I’m so excited for this second episode in my series on anxiety. The first episode of this series dropped on January 1st, and I took some time to talk about what happens to your body under stress and how your gut microbiome plays a role. I also covered why your dietary choices are so important.

During a stress response, hormones such as epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine are released, promoting the growth of certain pathogenic organisms such as E. coli, Salmonella, and H. pylori, as well as opportunistic bacteria such as Pseudomonas, Klebsiella, and yeasts like Candida. Furthermore, these stress hormones can also increase the formation of biofilms and the virulence of microbes, leading to heightened anxiety and panic attacks.

Today, I’m talking about the biochemical imbalances I treat in my clinic that have a tremendous impact on anxiety.

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In this episode, I discuss:

• The impact of biochemical imbalances on anxiety
• How your brain is a chemical factory that requires certain nutrients to function optimally
• Methylation is a process that affects neurotransmitter activity and development, and imbalances can lead to anxiety
• Undermethylation and overmethylation are two variables of unbalanced methylation (too few or too many methyl groups)
• Copper toxicity affects mental health by lowering dopamine and increasing norepinephrine in the brain
• Zinc deficiency is linked to low neurotransmitter function, which can cause chronic anxiety
• Pyrrole disorder is a mood and stress disorder that results in deficiency of zinc and vitamin B6 that can cause high anxiety

Listen to the podcast here:

Links:

• Sami’s cookbooks for each biotype
• Ready to work with Sami? Book a free discovery call
• My healing story

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Before we begin, I want you to think of your brain as a chemical factory.

This factory requires special materials to function optimally so that neurotransmitters, hormones, and enzymes are balanced and perform the way they should. Your own chemical factory requires nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. Without them, you’re going to feel sick, stressed, and anxious.

Nutrients are substances that provide nourishment essential for growth and the maintenance of life. Our bodies were created to thrive on them, and when we become deficient, many disorders and conditions that impact the brain and body develop.

The exact type and quantity of nutrients are going to be unique to you. Too much or too little, and you have an imbalance or an overload, which can cause a lot of anxiety. If you adjust these special materials, you can heal the anxiety by eliminating the imbalance or overload. Of course, we all have anxiety from time to time, myself included, but chronic anxiety and panic attacks that seemingly come out of nowhere require deeper investigation.

Understanding your unique biochemistry, meaning the nutrient imbalances and overloads within your body, is a powerful pathway to healing. Now, let’s take a deep dive into the common conditions I treat in my practice that can cause anxiety.

Understanding Methylation and Its Impact on Mental Health and Anxiety

First up is methylation, which is a chemical reaction that occurs in every cell and tissue in the body except for red blood cells. It regulates many substances that are necessary for the body to function. Our bodies possess an on-off switch for certain hormones, neurotransmitters, enzymes, and various chemicals known as methyl groups.

If you’re curious about the chemistry involved, a methyl group is made up of one carbon atom bonded with three hydrogen atoms. But what does methylation mean for your everyday quality of life?

Methyl groups can drastically alter how you think, feel, and act and have a powerful impact on the in-utero environment, which is intimately connected to the nutrients taken in from our mothers.

During the methylation process, methyl groups are added to our DNA. Methyl groups control DNA by binding to a gene and telling it whether or not to express itself. Methyl groups bind differently to DNA depending on which type of cell it is. For example, methyl groups will bind differently in a skin cell versus a liver cell. This is one of the ways the liver cell knows it’s a liver cell.

Enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, and genes are all proteins and, as a result, are affected by methylation.

Methylation is profoundly connected to mental health and is one of several epigenetic mechanisms that cells use to control gene expression.

The methylation cycle is a series of biochemical pathways that influence every body system, especially detoxification, energy production, and immune system function. When these pathways are out of balance, they can negatively affect neurotransmitter activity and development. For example, if serotonin and dopamine are not properly methylated, they will become inactive, which in turn can lead to a lot of anxiety.

An analogy I like to give my clients is that unbalanced methylation is like driving on I-405 in Los Angeles: there are tons of blocked exits, accidents that slow and stop traffic, detours, and angry drivers. If you’ve ever had to drive I-405, you know what I mean. If this happens inside your body, toxins build up and eventually cause cognitive dysregulation and disease.

For example, in normal methylation, the body naturally converts certain toxic amino acids, such as homocysteine, into beneficial ones. For those of us with an impaired methylation cycle, this process becomes gridlocked and congested, just like I-405, resulting in the beneficial amino acids being unable to protect us.

When methylation is not balanced, it has two variables: overmethylation and undermethylation.

Undermethylation: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Let’s start with undermethylation, a condition I was born with and one that runs in my family. Remember those methyl groups I mentioned? Well, we don’t make enough of them on our own, and without them, our bodies’ ability to create adequate levels of the neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine is significantly diminished.

If you’re undermethylated, you’re likely to be a high-achiever, constantly striving for greater levels of career accomplishment. Entrepreneurs, corporate executives, professional athletes, doctors, lawyers, and producers all fit this type.

Despite all your accomplishments and accolades, you struggle with anxiety and severe inner turmoil yet remain calm on the outside. Highly perfectionistic, no detail goes unnoticed. You have obsessive-compulsive tendencies you can’t seem to shake that drive you and the people in your life nuts. Even with poor concentration, ritualistic behaviors make you feel in control and you have a tendency toward addiction.

Undermethylators have a genetic tendency to be very low in calcium, magnesium, methionine, and vitamin B6 (side note: these are the special materials I mentioned earlier), with excessive levels of folate, which is why vegan diets are not good choices for us. This is because all forms of folate eventually strip methyl at the level of DNA. And when I say all forms of folate, this includes not only dietary but also supplemental forms such as methylfolate and folinic acid, which can cause a lot of anxiety for us.

By the way, undermethylation makes up the majority of methylation imbalances, with now over half the population affected. It is also an underlying component of autism.

Also, keep in mind there is no one-size-fits-all here. For example, if you are undermethylated and have elevated homocysteine that requires the use of one or more forms of folate, that must also be taken into consideration for healing to occur.

Overmethylation: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Now, let’s talk about overmethylation. The opposite of undermethylation, overmethylators have a genetic tendency to make too many methyl groups, which creates excessive levels of the important neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which leads to hyperexcitability in the brain and very high anxiety.

Overmethylators do not respond well to serotonin-enhancing substances such as Prozac, Zoloft, St. John’s Wort, and SAMe, which can make them suicidal.

As an overmethylator, you’re likely to be the creative, sensitive type that marches to the beat of your own drum with high empathy for others. You may have had little motivation for scholastic achievements in school because you had trouble sitting still. Additionally, something I see often in this biotype is brilliant musical and artistic abilities. Physically, you may be overweight with a pear-shaped body (but not always), have heavy body hair, and have upper body/head/neck pain.

Paranoia and sleeping problems are also commonly seen in this methylation biotype.

Overmethylators have a genetic tendency to be very low in folate and vitamin B6, in addition to other important nutrients, which is why a predominantly high-folate, plant-based diet with small amounts of protein is better for these individuals.

Understanding Copper Toxicity and Its Impact on Mental Health and Anxiety

Now, let’s discuss copper. I’ve talked a lot about copper in previous episodes, which I will link to in the show notes. Copper and estrogen share an intimate relationship with one another because estrogen increases copper retention in the body, which is why females (especially those on birth control) make up the majority of this condition.

Often hereditary, copper toxicity is an inability to eliminate excess copper effectively. It is not the same as Wilson’s Disease, which is a rare genetic disorder.

Copper toxicity profoundly affects every system in the body, especially the reproductive, nervous, and glandular systems. It also has a devastating effect on mental health because it lowers dopamine (the neurotransmitter that controls the brain’s pleasure and reward centers) and increases norepinephrine (a neurotransmitter that also functions as a stress hormone) in the brain. When this occurs, I often see very high anxiety and panic disorders.

Menstrual irregularities are also connected to copper overload, with symptoms often occurring after a hormonal event such as puberty, pregnancy, or menopause.

Copper is especially disruptive to the adrenal glands, which make the stress hormone cortisol. This constant agitation leads to dysregulation of cortisol production, causing the body to go into fight and flight.

Postpartum depression and psychosis are directly connected to elevated levels of copper, especially with multiple births, because copper levels increase with each pregnancy and do not go back to normal post-birth.

As a metal, copper is a conductor of energy, which can cause insomnia, racing thoughts, heart palpitations, and dizziness especially after insertion of a copper IUD or oral contraceptive, symptoms all of my female clients have complained about after trying these methods of birth control.

Copper and zinc work in tandem with each other to control the overgrowth of fungal, yeast, and parasitic infections. Without the proper ratio, these types of infections can become chronic and difficult to eliminate. And as I shared in my last episode, gut infections can also cause a lot of anxiety.

Understanding Zinc Deficiency and Its Impact on Mental Health and Anxiety

Let’s move on to zinc! I call zinc a “master mineral” because it’s needed for your body to produce enzymes, antioxidants (such as glutathione and metallothionine), neurotransmitters, and hormones.

Zinc is critical for digestion and assimilation, feeling joyful and happy, producing healthy babies, a balanced menstrual cycle, and good sleep, to name a few. It enhances resistance to stress as well as helps to maintain intellectual function, memory, and mood levels. Zinc plays a key role in cell development and gene expression, and when deficient, the result is a wide variety of mental and physical health challenges, with chronic anxiety at the top of the list.

In fact, zinc deficiency is by far the most frequently observed chemical imbalance in mental health because zinc is needed to make neurotransmitters such as GABA, which is a calming neurotransmitter that is often deficient in individuals who struggle with a lot of anxiety.

Zinc is also a critical factor in pre and postnatal development because zinc deficiency can be passed from parent to child. This significantly affects not only growth, development, and immune function but also your child’s ability to think, feel, and act, which can lead to behavioral disorders, ADHD, autism, and anxiety and panic disorders.

Zinc deficiency in parents before conception can cause miscarriage, fetal growth restrictions, learning disabilities, mental health challenges, and can even influence gender. This is because it takes more zinc to create a male than a female. While there is no way to determine gender, I almost always see zinc deficiency in couples that miscarry males and only produce girls.

I often see zinc deficiency in people with strong sensitivities, frequent infections, anorexia, poor memory and concentration, depression and anxiety, poor immune function, suicidal tendencies, and pale skin.

Understanding Pyrrole Disorder and Its Impact on Mental Health and Anxiety

And lastly, let’s move on to a condition called Pyrrole disorder (also known as pyroluria), which is a mood and stress disorder. It is often an inherited condition in Northern European people groups such as the Irish, Scottish, English, Welsh, and Scandinavian, especially those with light features: blonde or red hair, blue or green eyes, and fair skin.

Pyrrole molecules are constantly excreted in our urine and for the typical person, this is not a big deal. However, for someone with Pyrrole disorder, nutrient deficiencies occur because these molecules have an affinity for zinc and vitamin B6 and latch onto and excrete them in the urine before the body is able to absorb them. And as I mentioned previously, when zinc and B6 are low, high anxiety often results.

Another feature of Pyrrole disorder is a deficiency in arachidonic acid, a polyunsaturated omega-6 essential fatty acid. Unsaturated fatty acids are especially important because they provide fluidity to cell membranes and assist in communication between brain cells.

The pyrroluric individual, however, already has adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids but is incredibly deficient in arachidonic acid, which is why they tend to worsen on fish oil, DHA, and EPA supplements.

This is the reason I’m always sharing that omega-3 fatty acids aren’t for everyone, despite general recommendations to the contrary.

Omega-6 essential fatty acids are essential for normal growth and development, regulating metabolism, maintaining the reproductive system, skin and hair growth, and bone health.

Omega 6’s have gotten a bad reputation due to their abundance in junk foods and industrialized vegetable seed oils, which I don’t recommend. However, it is unfortunate that a one-sided view of them has led many people to think all of them are bad, which has resulted in extreme avoidance and, even worse, increased deficiencies.

Symptoms of this disorder are typically most evident in toddlers and teenagers who have not yet learned how to cope with the resulting behaviors this disorder creates. I believe this is where the term “terrible twos” comes from.

Pyroluric individuals are severely depressed in zinc and vitamin B6. Zinc and vitamin B6 are critical for a healthy immune system, neurotransmitter balance, intellectual function, mood, and memory, to name a few.

Low levels of these important nutrients result in high irritability and temper, poor stress control, memory and concentration problems, severe mood swings, anxiety, and depression.

Pyrrole disorder is connected to a variety of symptoms and disorders, from stretch marks, light sensitivity, nausea, and night owl tendencies to Multiple Sclerosis and Rapid Cycling Bipolar Disorder.

Often genetically inherited, I regularly see it when there is a long line of family alcoholism coupled with explosive anger and rage. Irish drinking and fiery redhead jokes all have their roots in pyrroluria.

Struggle with Anxiety? Do a Deep Dive into Your Nutrition

Although we just skimmed the surface of these imbalances, if you’d like to learn more I’ve created a cookbook for each of them that contains delicious recipes as well as more in-depth explanations and research, which I’ll link to in the show notes.

Thanks for being with me today. I look forward to being with you again in two weeks as I continue my discussion on anxiety and why you may want to consider medications as another underlying cause.

I believe sharing is caring, so I have a favor to ask. If my show is helpful to you, I would be so grateful if you would leave me a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. It is through sharing that we create community, eliminate guilt and shame, and bring about healing. Thank you in advance for taking three minutes out of your day to support my show.