ALDH2 deficiency advice

[bluejourney]

I have had years of gut problems, partly, I’m sure, connected to my hypothyroidism, lactose intolerance and gluten intolerance, however I’m not sure if it’s all due to my thyroid. I am wondering whether I may also have ALDH2 deficiency. If you’re unfamiliar with this, it’s a common genetic mutation, and means your liver isn’t producing the ALDH enzymes to deal with acetaldehydes (eg in alcohol, vinegar, dairy, ripe fruit, fermented foods - including bread - and environmental pollutants). Candida albicans overgrowth can make this worse as it converts sugar into acetaldehydes through fermentation. Acetaldehyde is very toxic and it inhibits glucose metabolism and suppresses T-cells. People with this deficiency are more susceptible to some cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, the list goes on…. So you can see why I might want to rule it out!

My question is, has anybody had experience of having a genetic test for ADH2 deficiency, and if so, was it available on the NHS or done privately? Also, has anyone found a supplement that helped, eg Essential AD2 and Sunset Alcohol Flush Support? I’d be very grateful for any advice.

[radd]

bluejourney,

Gut problems are notorious in hypothyroidism and especially Hashi because so much of the immune system is situated in the gut. Your problems could be due to any number of issues and probably combinations of many. Have you a specific reason for suspecting a mutation on this gene? Maybe others in your family have ADH2 impairments?

There are private genetic tests available for ADH2 deficiency but I haven’t ever seen it mentioned on NHS websites, and I don’t think it directly relates to thyroid issues either, more in directly through poor metabolising of alcohol.

If you are interested in genetic testing for conditions that more directly influence thyroid hormone behaviour the DIO2 tests a thyroid conversion enzyme and the Genova's MTHFR tests methylation, ie our abilities to process, metabolise, excrete folate & recycle homocysteine.

The 23&me test is also good fun and has MTHFR included but doesn’t explain results in such depth. It also doesn’t test for VDR impairments but does offer info on research into genetics and osteoporosis which is quite common in older hypothyroid women. For VDR testing you would need to use labs such as Blueprint Genetics.

[bluejourney in reply to radd]

Radd, thank you very much for your reply. It is specifically the ADH2 deficiency genetic test I am interested in, as a lot of my symptoms fit, and I’d like to rule it out. Yes, I think it is a separate issue to hypothyroidism. I suspect I inherited the hypothyroidism from my mother, but some of the digestion problems from my father. If one is ADH2 deficient, I imagine hypothyroidism would make it worse. I’ve got an appointment with an NHS consultant dietician next month, so maybe she’ll have some information on it.