Torimintz wrote:I have 23 and me and have both 4 alleles. But... how do I know if I have the bad MTHFR. Which MTHFR am I exactly looking for. Are there different types?
After logging into 23andme, go to the upper right hand corner, where your name should be. On that pulldown menu, select "browse raw data." You can download your data by clicking the download tab (which will give you a long text file that you can search with a find function),
OR if you want to quickly check for the primary MTHFR SNP we are talking about, simply stay on the "browse" tab and enter into the search field:
rs1801133 then click enter.
It should spit out a result. Look to the right column, under "your genotype." There should be G/G, G/A, or A/A.
G/G - normal genotype
G/A - heterozygous (one copy) for mutation
A/A - homozygous for the mutation
(The reason they report "A" instead of "T" and "C" instead of "G" on 23andme just has to do with the orientation of the DNA strand)
If, like me, you are homozygous for the mutation, I'd suggest checking your homocysteine levels and thinking about supplementing. According to SNPedia: "homozygous for C677T of MTHFR = 10-20% efficiency in processing folic acid = high homocysteine, low B12 and folate levels." You can read about all the increased risk of diseases on the Methylation wiki or on SNPedia here:
https://www.snpedia.com/index.php/Rs1801133.
I just tested my homocysteine levels for the first time. They've probably been high my whole life, and I have been vegan for over 20 years, which can exacerbate that. I'm really grateful to Dr. Bredesen for his book and you all for this forum. I would never have known the problem or how to fix it!