Yes, I was just responding to the above off-topic chatter about lowering it. Should have been more clear.
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Prescription drugs of all types increase it ā¦
Fibratesā¦
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Short answer: yes, especially after protein-heavy meals. Not a crisis, just normal biochem being dramatic.
Hereās the deal, fast and useful:
What rises: Total homocysteine (tHcy) in blood.
Why: Meals with methionine (an amino acid abundant in meat, eggs, some dairy) temporarily flood the remethylation/transsulfuration pathways. The āmethionine loadā test in clinics literally exploits this to see how well your methylation handles a surge.
How much:
- Mixed, normal meals: usually a small bump (often ~1ā3 Ī¼mol/L above your fasting baseline).
- Very methionine-rich bolus (think: huge steak, methionine-load test): can be a larger spike.
Timing: Starts rising within 2ā4 hours, often peaks around 4ā8 hours, then drifts back toward baseline by 8ā12+ hours. This is why labs want a fasting draw.
Who spikes more: People low in folate, B12, B6, or with sluggish kidney function, hypothyroidism, or certain meds can show bigger and longer spikes.
What blunts it:
- TMG (betaine) taken with or near a protein-heavy meal can flatten the post-meal rise.
- Adequate folate/B12/B6 status.
- Pair protein with vegetables/greens (folate) instead of going full āprotein comet.ā
- Donāt chug multiple strong coffees alongside a huge methionine hit if youāre chasing a pristine post-meal curve.
Bottom line: Meals, especially high-methionine ones, do cause a temporary homocysteine bump. Your fasting number is the one to track for long-term risk. If youāre actively trying to damp post-meal spikes, keep B-vitamins on point and consider TMG 500ā1000 mg with big protein meals.
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Iām here to figure out if the AI from Good labs is correct in advising me to take methylated folate.
My homocysteine levels jumped from 6 to 11.
There is a chance itās not my folate levels because I was very recently experimenting with NAD subq injections (not a high dose and only a handful of times), but due to my CVD, Iām stopping out of an abundance of caution.
Also,
I had the Vibrant Micronutrient Test done last Jan, and it and my doc said my folate numbers were good, and due to my WFPB diet, that tracksā¦. Butā¦.
After uploading those results in Good Labs, their AI told to me part of my problem might be my low folate (a human confirmed it). After some googling, it seems that the Vibrant test uses a lower optimal range, but because the ranges donāt seem to be universally accepted, I wanted to double check and get everyoneās thoughts.
It showed my serum folate was >20 ng/ml, and Vibrants ref range said anything over 4.6 ng/ml is goodā¦
It showed my RBC folate was 239 ng/ml, and their ref range shows that anything over 95 ng/ml is good
Howeverā¦
I was told RBC is a more important measure, and 239 ng/ml shows Iām low and might be contributing to my higher homocysteine. Goodlabs ref range shows it should be above 333. Health Matters IO says their optimal range is 499 - 1504 ng/mL.
Before I add yet one more supplement to my huge stack, I just wanted to see if the hivemind knows better than what Iām reading. 
Thank you!
Also, while I have you, how long should I wait for a new homocysteine lab to show a change?
Do you take TMG? That would be my next step with homocysteine, because your folate numbers donāt look bad, I doubt thatās the issue (assuming decent B12 levels). You can get Bulk Supplements TMG and do 1.5g - 3g daily, dissolves pretty good in tea and the like (I take it in my morning drink mix with taurine, FOS, blueberry, cranberry extracts, all in green tea). The TMG can also help with exercise. Worth a try.
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Thank you Cronos!
I always get warnings about my B12 being too high, so Iāll order TMG right now!!! Thx for the tip on getting the powder and sharing your source.
Appreciate this, thx
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This meta shows slightly higher dose of TMG to be effective, but I found lower doses to work just as well:
Betaine supplementation decreases plasma homocysteine in healthy adult participants: a meta-analysis
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If youāre using creatine 2g or more per day, youāll cut your methyl group demands by another 40%. So together with TMG and methylated vitamin B you should have more than enough methyl groups. I take all of that in the morning and then glycine in the evening to pick up the āsurplusā.
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While positioned as possibly insignificant in this paper, it is worth looking at the effect of TMG on TC and LDL-C
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Yes, but as always, any drug/supplement/intervention should not be looked at in isolation, but in the whole context of the body in a particular individual (personalized precision medicine). It is my understanding that Beth is under powerful LLT, and in this context any impact of TMG on lipids is likely going to be trivial. As always, measure. Do an intervention, measure the impact of before and after. Not every intervention is going to be suitable in any given individual. TMG is one option to explore.
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RobTuck, thank you for pointing that out!
And yes, CronosTempi, you remember correctly, my lipids are extremely well managed (repatha, etc)
So, I received my tmg last night and excitedly took 3gramsā¦
And in being overzealous (patience is not my strong suit), today I took 6grams.
My thinking was if that was in the study, Iād try it for a week or two just to get a kickstart on lowering my homocysteine, and then Iād lower it for more of a maintenance dose until I got new labsā¦
Oh, mistakes were made!!!
I never ever get nauseous, but this did it, and I even threw up my lunch,
*sitting here in shame until this wears off.
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Nausea is not a frequent reaction, but itās better to work up to it, and even if taking 6g, donāt do it all at once, split the dose in two, 3g morning and evening.
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