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VedaPulse and Heart Rate Variability

vedapulse electrodes on wrist

VedaPulse and Heart Rate Variability

vedapulse electrodes on wrist

Vedapulse is a tools that measures heart rate variability and converts that information into a functional assessment of the patient’s health. In order to understand how this works some basic concepts about the heart and nervous system need to be understood.

Heart rate is controlled by input from the nervous system. Every second the nervous system senses what is going on through the body and adjust heart rate accordingly. Therefore, a healthy heart rate is one that shows some variability. This is a sign that the nervous system and heart are able to adapt to stress.

Heart rate variability is the difference in time from one heart beat to the next. When healthy it shows some variation in the length of each beat but not so much that it would be considered an an arrhythmia.

The nervous system is divided into two parts:

  1. Somatic nervous system is what we consciously control.
  2. Autonomic nervous system are things which happening automatically, without us thinking. Examples are the heart rate, breathing, digestion and immune system. This is the part of the nervous which Vedapulse can measure.

The autonomic nervous system is further divided into two parts:

  1. Sympathetic nervous system. Stimulates body for intense physical activity. Helps us response to acute stress. The so called "fight or flight" response that we have in emergency situations is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system.
  2. Para-sympathetic nervous system. Opposed the sympathetic nervous system. The phrase "rest and digest," is used to describe it’s actions. It decreases the heart rate, improves digestion and allows the body to repair itself.

Vedapulse works by measuring electrical impulses that come from each heart beat. It shows the pulse wave associated with each heart beat, as well as patterns in heart rate variability from one beat to the next.

Vedapulse heartbeat recording

The following chart shows healthy heart rate variability. The highest bar in the middle show that about half of the heart beats fall into a narrow range of length. Then there are some heartbeats of faster lenght and others which are shorter.

Heart rate variability histogram 1

On the other hand, this chart shows an issue with heart rate variability. About 90% of the heartbeats are all about the same which shows lack of ability for the body to adapt to stress.

vedapulse histogram and low heart rate variability

Further information is gathered by measurement of frequencies of each heartbeat. Without getting into too much unnecessary detail, some frequencies are associated with sympathetic nervous system activity and others with para-sympathetic. This allows Vedapulse to give a lot of information about the state of nervous system health.

All this by itself makes Vedapulse an excellent tool which I would run on almost all clients. But the software is able to go further and convert heart rate variability into a pulse diagnosis according to the methods of Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine. This gives much more information about the state of each organ system, which ones are depleted or functioning with excess tension.

The following chart shows the Chinese Medicine interpretation.

Vedapulse TCM results

Since adding Vedapulse to my practice I’ve found it to be a helpful tool on most clients. It takes pulse diagnosis from being a subjective interpretation based upon what the practitioner feels, to an objective, measurable diagnosis. Depending upon the client it can be useful in many different ways. Just looking at the heart rate variability aspect can point to issues in cardiovascular system from a conventional perspective.

As an herbalist Vedapulse helps show my clients why I make certain decisions. Traditional herbal medicine is not about matching up the right herbs with specific diseases. It is about choosing the best herbs for the patient. This is based upon concepts such as organ affinity, temperature, and if an herb is exciting or calming.

Vedapulse allows me a way to show clients in an objective way how all of this is affecting their body. It also gives an objective way to follow up later and see what changes have taken place.

Go to the page for more on Traditional Herbal Medicine

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COMT, Anxiety, Folate and Genetic Testing

COMT, Anxiety, Folate and Genetic Testing

What is COMT

COMT stands for catechol-O-methyltransferase. This is an enzyme which is used to degrade catecholamines. We have three major catecholamines:

  • Dopamine
  • Epinephrine (also known as adrenaline)
  • Nor-epinephrine (also known as nor-adrenaline)

Dopamine

This is often called our "feel good" neurotransmitter. Dopamine triggers the brain’s "reward system."

But dopamine does not simply make us feel good. It is associated with repetitive behavior. Dopamine stimulates the brain to repeat behavior that triggers the release of more dopamine. This is why it is associated with addictive behavior. People do things that triggers the release of dopamine. They feel good for a movement and then seek to repeat the behavior to get more dopamine.

Dopamine is neither good nor bad. We need some of it for motivation, concentration and feeling pleasure. However, too much can become overly stimulating.

Epinephrine and Nor-epinephrine

Epinephrine is adrenaline. This is an emergency, stimulatory neurotransmitter. We need some epinephrine to respond to life events and provide energy to get us through true emergency situations.

On the other hand, if epinephrine is elevated all the time then it feels like we are in an emergency situation that never stops. This can lead to chronic feelings of anxiety.

COMT genetic types: Warrior Versus Worrier

COMT enzyme activity is regulated by several genes, most notably COMT v158m.

  • The "warrior" type has high production of COMT. These people can quickly degrade dopamine and epinephrine. This gives them an advantage in being able to calm down after a stressful event. 

  • The "worrier" type has decreased production of COMT. These people are likely to stay stimulated longer after a stressful event. This may cause increase symptoms of stress and anxiety as.

  • Intermediate Types have neither high or low COMT activity. They are in the middle.

Genetic testing for COMT activity

Just because someone has a gene that predisposes them for a condition that does not mean they will have symptoms. Genetics are complicated. We have many genes, that work together, under the influence of environmental triggers to produce symptoms.

Having "worrier" COMT genes does not mean you will inevitably have symptoms of anxiety and go through life as a worrier. Likewise, having the "warrior" genes does not make  you impervious to stress.

When working with clients my starting point is never genetics. In fact, for most cases I do not even bother with looking at genetics. We have many other factors that can influence mood such as the stress from life events and hormonal issues. Emotions should not be reduced down to a few genes.

However, it is important to recognize times when genetic testing may be helpful.

The several following issues may come up with slow COMT activity:

  1. Increased sensitivity to stress and anxiety

  2. Issues with estrogen metabolism. COMT is also needed to detoxify catechol estrogens. This can lead to hormonal effects as well. Supplement that help the liver detoxify estrogens may be needed

  3. Sensitivity to folic acid supplements.

    When genetic testing started to become popular, many people were told to supplement with folate based upon their MTHFR genetics. I can remember one particular case of a woman who had previously consulted with another naturopath who had made a name for himself as the folate/methylation expert. Based upon genetic testing he recommended a large dose of folate which made her anxiety symptoms much worse.

    Folate increases production catecholamines. So for people with slow COMT and anxiety, taking a folate supplement is akin to putting fuel on the fire. They may have extreme symptoms with tiny doses.

    This is true even if genetics and blood testing say someone needs more folate. None of that matters if COMT is slow. You then have to work on COMT first before doing anything with folate.

About the time I was in naturopathic school is when genetic testing for folate first became popular. Overnight everyone was talking about folate and how essential it is. How everyone has methylation issues and nutraceutical companies where brining out products with high doses.

This is often how the supplement industry works. Some promising research come out and then suddenly everyone is trying to make money off it it. We’ve seen this with folate, vitamin D, tumeric and now CBD. I don't wish to imply that these supplements do not help people. They are all good. That does not mean they are all miracle supplements that everyone needs to take either.

The point is that at first we were told so many people have genetic methylation issues and need large doses of methyl folate. A few years later and I go to same lectures and am told to be cautious of folate because some people with slow COMT production will not respond well to it.

The lesson to learn here is that genetic testing can be helpful, but it is not as simple as a single gene means you need to take so much of a specific nutrient. Single genes rarely cause diseases themselves. Testing COMT genetics is a tool. I have seen it be very helpful in some cases of anxiety. However, it is just one consideration.

Worrier genetics is not a disease

I believe that the more we know about genes, the more we will learn how supposed "bad" genes may have their own advantages.

Lower COMT activity is associated with positive factors such as better cognition, memory, brain plasticity and ability to feel more pleasure. The COMT types, "warrior" or "worrier" are not good or bad. This is just human variation.

How to get COMT testing done

23 and me

If you have already had your genes tested by a company such as 23 and me, you can download your raw data and send it to another company for interpretation.

Once such service I like is promethease. It's a cheap and simple way to find out what is in your genes.

Ask your doctor to do a blood test

See if your doctor can have the genetics tested on blood work. Doctors commonly run tests for MTHFR genes C677T and A1298C. Panels may be available which also include COMT. It is best to have both tested.

Doctors Data methylation Blood Spot Test

This is an advanced test that cover COMT, folate and much more. It only needs a small amount of blood from a skin prick, so there is no need to go to a lab. It is a somewhat expensive tests, but it only has to be done once and then you’ll have a lot of important information to know about your genes for the rest of your life.

Go here fore more information on the methylation blood spot test.

I keep these kits in the office and in certain cases just running a comprehensive genetic test such as this is best.