Methylation, MTHFR & The Silent Problem No One Is Talking About

Here at mindbodygreen, we believe in holistic well-being backed by science, the power of mindful movement, eating plant-based, breathing, connecting to others, and the importance of purpose. We also believe that sometimes these things aren't enough—and that's where supplementation comes in.

High homocysteine is defined as anything higher than 15 umol/L, and mine was 63.3 umol/L! These shocking test results helped Lipman determine that I have a specific variant of the MTHFR gene that affects my body's methylation cycle. Translation: My MTHFR enzyme (which my MTHFR gene codes for) doesn't convert folate and folic acid into the active 5-MTHF form as efficiently as those without an MTHFR variant. (We cover the methylation cycle and its impact on whole-body health more here.)

Through this part of my health journey, I discovered that more than 50% of the U.S. population1 struggles with the same issue I do: individual genetic variation in the MTHFR gene that can result in varying degrees of suboptimal methylation. As it turns out, the MTHFR gene codes for the MTHFR enzyme, which is critical for activating folate (vitamin B9). In turn, active folate (5-MTHF) drives essential biochemical pathways forward in the body, enabling healthy homocysteine levels and also fueling methylation.*

Essentially, this means that the body's methylation cycle cannot skip along at the speed it should due to an MTHFR gene variant that over 150 million Americans have but few are aware of. This widespread issue has massive implications given that methylation can affect everything from cardiovascular and neurological health to detoxification, oxidative stress balance, energy, protein balance, longevity, and more.

The most surprising part of this story? Physically, I felt totally fine when I discovered my homocysteine results. I had no obvious signs whatsoever. That's why I can say firsthand that suboptimal methylation is one of the biggest, most silent issues when it comes to our health and longevity, yet very few even know it exists.

Our gene-focused methylation support formula provides all of the benefits of optimal methylation in just two capsules per day.*

Statistically speaking, there's a pretty good chance you or someone you know has suboptimal methylation and doesn’t realize it. Methylation occurs in every single cell of the body and has massive, whole-body health implications, so you definitely want to make sure your methylation cycle is running as it should!