dopamine

(see my post for Fast COMT)   What are catecholamines?   Catecholamines, which include dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine, are neurotransmitters made from the amino acid tyrosine. These chemicals are present in the central and peripheral nervous systems and are linked to pain and mood disorders. An imbalance of catecholamines have been found in people with chronic pain conditions like fibromyalgia and mood disorders like depression and anxiety. The COMT enzyme helps break down catecholamines. When COMT activity is low, it leads to higher dopamine levels in the brain. Dopamine is crucial for regulating emotions, pain perception, motivation, and behavior. Both COMT and dopamine receptors work together to maintain a balance in dopamine transmission, and an imbalance can lead to increased pain sensitivity and depression.   What is COMT? We all have a COMT gene.  COMT stands for catechol-O-methyltransferase. There are three variants of this gene, simply known as fast, slow or Intermediate. The COMT enzyme encodes the COMT gene which is involved in the breakdown of estrogen, caffeine and various catecholamine’s like dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine. COMT is part of an important biological pathway in the body called Methylation and is part of your dopaminerigic pathway. Slow COMT is known as met/met, AA or written as +/+. If you have a slow COMT, this means that the COMT enzyme that encode the COMT gene is slowed in it’s activity to break down estrogen and catecholamines like dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine. This could mean you can have higher levels of these. This isn’t necessarily a good thing.   What are some symptoms/signs of slow COMT? Here are some common symptoms or signs that you could have a slow COMT variant: You are prone to anxiety and mood disorders You have a good memory You can concentrate and pay attention quite well but get bored You don’t do well with caffeine or other stimulants, they tend to make you feel anxious You get stressed quite easily and have trouble calming down You have OCD tendencies You tend to be a workaholic It takes you a long time to calm down after you are upset You struggle with sleep You are easily irritated or annoyed You tend to react badly to anti-depressants You are energetic and some may describe you as hyperactive You are perhaps an extrovert and like to socialize You have menstrual issues and have experienced fibroids and PMDD   Slow COMT and Estrogen With estrogen, higher levels bring about their own problems such as: *weight gain *unpredictable periods with light or heavy bleeding *irritability *uterine fibroids *certain cancer such as breast, ovarian *anxiety   Slow COMT and ADHD With ADHD and high levels of dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine we start to see things like hyperactivity, impulsivity, mood disorders, inability to calm down or relax, more stress, insomnia and maybe more aggression.   Stimulants and Anti-depressants For people with slow COMT, they don’t react well to stimulants like caffeine and green tea and also do not always tolerate stimulant ADHD meds well or antidepressants. This is because they already have higher baseline levels of certain neurochemicals, and sometimes, this can cause an imbalance between them making a bad situation worse. For those with ADHD and slow COMT, they do not tend to react well with stimulants such as Ritalin, Adderall, and Vyvanse but do better on a non stimulant such as Intuniv.   So what do you do?   Getting support for your slow COMT This is what I do as a nutrigenetic practitioner and nutritional health coach. By getting your DNA tested through me, I help you understand what it is happening and provide you with the education, and recommendations to improve your ADHD, hormones, and cognitive function.   Carrying a slow COMT gene does  not mean it is behaving that way, it depends on how it is being influenced through epigenetics, such as what you are eating, your lifestyle, stress management and so on and these are the things we delve into so that you can improve your health and support it on a genetic level.   Contact me for more information if you recognize yourself in this and want more support.