Postpartum Recovery: How the MTHFR Gene Affects your Health
Have you heard about the MTHFR gene yet?
I believe It’s one of the missing links for our postpartum recovery.
Most of my clients have one or two of the MTHFR SNPs and they struggle with exhaustion, insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
In this post, we’ll uncover the symptoms of having the MTHFR gene, how to test for the gene, and the steps you can take to improve your health fast. Plus, if your children have the gene - you’ll be able to boost their health as well.
Let’s dive in.
MTHFR gene mutation
So, What is MTHFR?
It stands for "methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase" - it's an enzyme that aids detoxification and breaks down the folate and or folic acid from foods and supplements - along with other major roles in the body. The MTHFR gene provides the instructions for making the enzyme.
MTHFR is the name of the gene and the enzyme. So, it gets confusing.
The biggest concern postpartum is we may have consumed a large amount of folic acid {in our prenatal supplements} and we might continue to consume folic acid after birth as well leading to health concerns {in our supplements and food}. And, if you have the MTHFR gene, your body may not be able to metabolize this folic acid leading to additional health concerns like a B12 deficiency. Dr. Ben Lynch explains more here.
MTHFR Symptoms
Signs you have the MTHFR gene.. you or your children have
-depression and/or anxiety
-behavioral problems like ADHD
-low levels of vitamin B12 - which affects your nervous system
-difficulty getting pregnant
-high homocysteine levels
The Major 4 symptoms:
-you’ve had a miscarriage or cannot get pregnant
-you’ve struggled with anxiety on and off your whole life and can’t figure out why
-SSRIs make you feel flat
-you can’t pinpoint why you have anxiety
Why is this important?
If you have it, one of your children may have it and your choice of supplementation is important ‼️ You may need a methylated B vitamin.
Additionally….
SSRIs may not work for you
you may have high levels of homocysteine-you may experience more inflammation in your body
It determines which genes get turned on and turned off
It affects your DNA
It produces glutathione - which aids in detoxification
It also affects CoQ-10 - which is your energy production
your children {or parents} may have this as well
women with the gene, tend to have estrogen dominance - which could lead to PMS and PMDD
Miscarriages are ONE of the signs that you may have the MTHFR gene that affects detoxification.
And...30-45% of us have one of these genes 👆
Anxiety and the MTHFR
The healing sanctuary suggests avoiding medications that can deplete folate or interfere with methylation when possible: birth control pills, anticonvulsants, antacids, antidepressants, Ibuprofen, aspirin, Metformin, cholesterol-lowering medications like cholestyramine, colestipol and colesevelam, some antibiotics, and some estrogen replacement medications.
If your folate is low this will affect your health.
Folate affects your vitamins B12, and C and helps form red blood cells to prevent anemia
Additionally, If you have the MTHFR SNPs - SSRIs may make you feel flat. By changing your diet, and supplements and integrating herbal medicine and amino acids - you can reduce anxiety and panic attacks naturally.
MTHFR and postpartum care
By supporting methylation, you can increase your energy, improve detoxification pathways, and reduce your health risks.
Gary Breka, from 10X health, suggests this may be one of the reasons we struggle with postpartum insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
How do we test for the MTHFR gene?
Most likely you’ll have to pay for an out-of-pocket test.
ask your doctor to check the MTHFR just the A1298C SNP and C677T SNP because these are the two enzymes that have been shown to have poor health effects later in life
Labs that offer testing:
I went through Kashi clinical: https://kashilab.com/-
Quest and LabCorp offer the test
Genova
23 and me - possibly, they don’t believe the gene affects your health
Doctor's data
https://am.nordicvms.com/Catalogue.aspx
GX sciences
Most informative test and expensive: 10x Health Systems
Most affordable: Striate gene report: https://www.seekinghealth.com/products/strategene-report
=== The results will show +/- or +/+If you have 1 {+/-) or 2 (+/+) of the MTHFR enzyme?
If you test positive for one of the SNPs - you may have problems using folate and making B vitamins; especially B12.
What do you do if you have the MTHFR gene?
You want to supplement with a low dose of Methyl folate - around 400mcg
Dr. Aviva Romm suggests you can go as high as 800 mcg - or 1.2mg with postpartum depression - check with your doctor
Kids >2-11 years of age can supplement with 50-400 mcg
I like Thorne or Seeking Health Prenatal or Seeking health vitamins in general are amazing!
>>>Head over to your full script store to save 15% off supplements:https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/tgregorio/store-start
MTHFR and postpartum experience
As a mother of twins, I didn’t realize how important the postpartum time would be for healing. Most likely, I consumed a lot of folic acid during my birth {as suggested by doctors} and during the postpartum time - I had difficulty assimilating the excessive hormones - along with sleep deprivation this led to anxiety, insomnia, rage, and depression.
The combination of the incorrect B vitamins and experiencing estrogen dominance - I believe affected my whole body and mental health after birth.
I highly suggest getting tested or trying a methylated B vitamin to see if it helps your energy and sleep.
Of course, this is just one piece of the puzzle when healing postpartum anxiety and depression.
MTHFR and postpartum folic acid
“It’s the FOLIC ACID and environmental toxins that are burdening our bodies; rather than the MTHFR gene”
https://www.drbenlynch.com/folic-acid-side-effects/
What is Deplin?
Deplin may be right for you {check with your doctor}, but the levels of methyl folate are high 7.5 mg of methyl folate from Metafolin® and 15mg!
see the ingredients here:https://www.deplin.com/pdf/DEPLINCapsulesPIStatement.pdf
I have the MTHFR gene, now what?
If you’re struggling with anxiety or depression, consider taking one of the tests above.
You’re looking for the MTHFR gene with snips A1298C SNP and C677T SNP - which causes the most health problems.
Take a look at your supplements and notice if your folate is L- Methyl Folate - not cyanocobalamin {which is a synthetic form}
Check out Seeking Health products and consider purchasing them
Make sweating a priority! This supports your detoxification pathways.
Eat a salad and lots of greens every day, as this will boost your folate levels.
Dr. Ben Lynch suggests, reducing folic acid in your supplements and diet.
Look for ways to lower your histamines - which may include adding bio-identical progesterone to reduce PMS and PMDD symptoms.
Improve your estrogen pathways by adding supplements like DIM + I3c.
Add Ashwagandha to help reduce stress and anxiety.
Ask a naturopathic doctor for inhalation of glutathione if you struggle with breathing, long-term time, low energy, or mold toxicity.
Conclusion
Your postpartum health could change when you incorporate the right foods, vitamins, and herbal remedies to help soothe your symptoms. If you’re struggling with insomnia, anxiety, or depression - it’s not your fault.
Asking for help is the first step in your healing process.
Do you have questions? Ask them below. I’m happy to help!
