Have You Had Folate Checked??

[sue1234]

I just read that folic acid(it says by supplementation) can raise histamine levels. It caught my attention, because my serum folate levels are, and have been, way over the upper normal level. I know some talk about MCAD, and I'm assuming that all correlates with histamine somehow. So, just thinking AGAIN here. I do flush and get really hot=histamine, possibly. What would make a folate so high?

[Sarah4444]

That's very interesting. I took large doses of folic acid for years when I was having my kids, and did get much worse over that time. Sorry I can't answer your question.

[Friedbrain]

OMGoodness, I want to know the answer, too! A few months after my "head blew up" (the big event 8 ys ago followed by assorted health problems ever since), I was still trying to get my health under control so kept having testing done. Bloodwork suggested "macroycytosis" (I just looked this up because I couldn't remember the details but wanted to give you accurate info , so the doc wanted to check to see if it was due to B12 or folate deficiencies. Instead:

Folic acid was greater than 24 (3.4-24 normal)

B12 was 1755 (normal 211-911)

So BOTH were elevated! (and opposite of what had been expected) But since it wasn't low, he didn't worry about it. I've researched as to the implications of such abnormal results, but haven't found anything. Nor have I ever met anyone else who had had a similar result! I DO have problems with hypoglycemia (even before then), getting very shaky when I don't eat for a while, though. I want to remember to ask for it to be tested again, just to make sure it's not still abnormal; maybe it was a one-time thing. But since they don't know what's wrong with me, it seems reasonable to cover all possible abnormal bases! I have neurological involvement and people kept telling me to take my B vitamins because deficiencies can cause neurological problems.....but my levels were so high! I wondered if maybe my body stored it but wasn't using it (?) so I ended up with excess? One theory that I can't find support for, but I'll just throw it out there.

[sue1234]

I would like to add that I can't "handle" B-vitamins. They make me bloat stomach-wise and then seem to hype me up. Like you mentioned, I don't know if it might be an inability to utilize them and they build up, or what.

[Birdlady]

You may want to research the folate trap. This happens when you don't have enough B12 to use it, so it just sits in your serum blood levels.

Here's some information on it. It's technical though.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/200184-overview

Within the plasma, folate is present, mostly in the 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-methyl THFA) form, and is loosely associated with plasma albumin in circulation. The 5-methyl THFA enters the cell via a diverse range of folate transporters with differing affinities and mechanisms (ie, adenosine triphosphate [ATP]–dependent H+ cotransporter or anion exchanger). Once inside, 5-methyl THFA may be demethylated to THFA, the active form participating in folate-dependent enzymatic reactions. Cobalamin (B-12) is required in this conversion, and in its absence, folate is "trapped" as 5-methyl THFA.

From then on, folate no longer is able to participate in its metabolic pathways, and megaloblastic anemia results. Large doses of supplemental folate can bypass the folate trap, and megaloblastic anemia will not occur. However, the neurologic/psychiatric abnormalities associated with B-12 deficiency ensue progressively.

Once a person starts supplementing B12 your blood levels will almost always be very high (above range), so to truly test your levels it is recommended to get a urinary methylmalonic acid checked. This is a sample that can be done at labcorp or quest. I just had this done to make sure my B12 therapy is enough and/or working for me.

There are many different forms of "folic acid" too. Most websites recommend taking one of the active forms rather than straight folic acid.