What you need to know about MTHFR?

This blog is an abbreviated excerpt of the MTHFR section in Dr. Sutton’s book Genetic Testing: Defining Your Path to a Personalized Health Plan.

What you need to know about MTHFR?

What does the MTHFR gene do?

• The MTHFR gene is important for your ability to activate vitamin B-9—Having one or more risk allele(s) in the MTHFR gene simply means that your body can’t naturally convert the inactive form of vitamin B-9 into the active form. This means that you may not be able to adequately use the vitamin B-9 from your diet and may require a specific supplemental form of vitamin B-9.
• MTHFR is important for your ability to detoxify—Think of MTHFR as a gene that creates a rotating door to remove toxins from the body after they enter through the environment. If you have an MTHFR risk allele, then your rotating door is not working efficiently and you’re likely building up toxins.
• MTHFR plays an important role in turning genes on and off—MTHFR plays an extremely important role in the body’s ability to methylate, which is essential for turning genes on and off.

What health problems are associated with having a risk allele for the MTHFR gene?

If you have the risk a risk allele for the MTHFR gene, and it’s undiagnosed or not treated with proper nutritional supplementation, it can lead to serious health problems. Some of these health problems can include:

I have an MTHFR risk allele. What should I talk to my doctor about doing so that I can reduce my health risks?

While there are many significant health risks related to MTHFR genetic variation, they can be easily corrected and bypassed through proper nutritional supplementation.

Nutrition to help bypass MTHFR genetic variations:

• Consider supplementing with the methyl-activated form of vitamin B-9 —This is an easy and powerful step toward protecting your health and bypassing health problems related to having a risk allele in the MTHFR gene. Having both the knowledge of an MTHFR risk allele and the ability to nutritionally bypass the health problems with a simple nutritional supplement is truly a gift that could add both quality and quantity to your life.
• Consider supplementing with vitamin B-2—The MTHFR enzyme requires vitamin B-2 to function properly; therefore, taking a high-quality activated B-complex with the activated forms of both vitamins B-9 and B-2 can be very helpful. The activated form of vitamin B-2 is called riboflavin-5’-phosphate.
• Avoid high amounts of folic acid—Folic acid is the inactive, synthetic form of vitamin B-9, which is used to fortify foods and most nutritional supplements. Anyone with one or more MTHFR risk allele(s) should avoid taking the supplemental forms of regular folic acid in large amounts, as it can compete with the activated form of vitamin B-9, causing potential health problems.
• Eat a diet high in green, leafy vegetables—Green, leafy vegetables are naturally high in vitamin B-9 (folate) and are essential for health. Eating a diet high in vegetables is important, but diet alone is often not sufficient for people with a risk allele in the MTHFR gene. Only about 50 percent of dietary folate is absorbed from food¹³. For those with a risk allele in the MTHFR gene, only around 30-80 percent of the dietary folate absorbed in the intestines will be converted to the methyl-active form of vitamin B-9 called Quatrefolic acid. And many people are not eating enough green leafy vegetables in the first place. If you have a risk allele for the MTHFR gene, you need to take to talk to your doctor about taking a supplemental form of vitamin-B9 in the methyl-activated form.
• Eat a diet high in foods that promote methylation—These include raw beets; raw, dark, green, leafy vegetables; raw broccoli; egg; chicken; beef; garlic; nuts; pork; fish; broccoli; citrus fruits and beans.
• Exercise—Exercise has been shown to improve methylation in people with a family history of diabetes¹⁵.

How do you know if you inherited an MTHFR risk allele?

If you want to know if you have inherited one or more of the MTHFR gene risk alleles, then you can do genetic testing through “23andMe” and then run a genetic report through http://GeneticDetoxification.com. The GeneticDetoxification report that is generated is designed to go along with Dr. Sutton’s new cutting-edge book Genetic Testing: Defining Your Path to a Personalized Health Plan.

References:
1.) Mohammad et al, Aberrations in folate metabolic pathway and altered susceptibility to autism. Psychiatr Genet 2009 Aug; 19(4):171-6.
2.) Robert J Hedava. Nutrition and Depression: Nutrition, Methylation, and Depression, Part 2 Nutritional support for the methylation cycle plays a critical role. Published on November 22, 2010. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/health-matters.
3.) Gilbody S, et al. Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (MTHFR) Genetic Polymorphisms (C677T variant) and Psychiatric Disorders: A HuGE Review. Am J Epidemiol. 2007;165:1-13.
4.) Melas PA, Rogdaki M, Ösby U, et al.Epigenetic aberrations in leukocytes of patients with schizophrenia: association of global DNA methylation with antipsychotic drug treatment and disease onset. FASEB J. 2012, 26:2712–8.
5.) Thillainadesan G, Chitilian JM, et al. TGF-β-dependent active demethylation and expression of the p15ink4b tumor suppressor are impaired by the ZNF217/CoREST complex. Mol Cell. 2012 Jun 8;46(5):636-49.
6.) Siaw-Cheok Liew, Esha Das Gupta. Methylenetetrahydrafolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism: epidemiology, metabolism, and the associated diseases.Eur J Med Genet. 2015 Jan;58(1):1-10.
7.) Nitert M. D., Dayeh T., Volkov P., et al.. (2012). Impact of an exercise intervention on DNA methylation in skeletal muscle from first-degree relatives of patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes 61, 3322–3332. 10.2337/db11-1653
8.) Rutten BPF, Mill J. Epigenetic mediation of environmental influences in major psychotic disorders. Schizophr Bull. 2009;35(6):1045–56.
9.) Nguyen A., Rauch T. A., Pfeifer G. P., Hu V. W. Global methylation profiling of lymphoblastoid cell lines reveals epigenetic contributions to autism spectrum disorders and a novel autism candidate gene, RORA, whose protein product is reduced in autistic brain. The FASEB Journal.2010;24(8):3036–3051.
10.) Anway MD, et al. Epigenetic Transgenerational Actions of Endocrine Disruptors and Male Fertility. Science. 2005 Jun 3;308(5727):1466-9.
11.) Anway MD, et al. Epigenetic transgenerational actions of endocrine disruptors. Endocrinology. 2006 Jun;147(6 Suppl):S43-9
12). Judith M Greer and Pamela A McCombe: The role of epigenetic mechanisms and processes in autoimmune disorders. Biologics. 2012; 6: 307–327. Published online 2012 September 6.
13.) Hamilton, John. Folic Acid for Pregnant Mothers Cuts Kids’ Autism Risk. (2013. Feb 12th). Retrieved from: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/02/25/171828067/folic-acid-for-pregnant-mothers-cuts-kids-autism-risk
14.) Thomas, Philip; Fenech, Michael. Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, common polymorphisms, and relation to disease. Pg.375-386.
15.) Nitert MD, et al. Diabetes. 2012 Oct 1. [Epub ahead of print.]18.) Thomas, Philip; Fenech Michael. Methlenetetrahydrofolate reductase, common polymorphisms, and relation to disease. Pg 378.

These Statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This is intended for information purposes only.