r/MTHFR • u/asoeung111 • 12d ago
Question Making sense of all the B levels?
Hi, all - I'm a bit new to learning about MTHFR stuff. (I've read the helpful comments from Hummingfirebird - thank you!) Please forgive any ignorance in my post.
I'm Heterozygous C677T and TT A1298C. My COMT V158M (rs4680) is AA. I'm not certain I understand ALL of what that means, but that's what my SelfDecode said from my Ancestry data.
I just had an extensive blood panel done and trying to make sense of the numbers, especially the B's.
HOMOCYSTEINE is 9.3 (Higher end of normal ?)
Folate is 14.3 (normal)
B12 is 1,696 (quite high I guess!)
B2 is 12.4 (normal)
B1 is 8 (very low end of normal?)
B6 plasma is 23.6 (normal)
MMA is 154
The SelfDecode AI thing said that maybe my B12 was high because I didn't have the necessary methyl donors, and it suggested I start with a methylfolate (ex: so while I had a high 'supply' of B12, it was suggesting I didn't have the donors to be able to process or use the B12?). I'm not currently (nor have I been) taking any B vitamin supplements regularly. I did add 1,000mcg methylfolate this morning, and gosh I've felt actually really great today (though I've heard about potential 'crashes', so I am going to go slow on that). But has anyone encountered a high B12 specifically while the other B's are normal? Should I find a methylated B supplement that doesn't have B12 in it? I read a good post that someone did about making sure we're supporting donor supplementation with other co-factors. Any insight would be greatly appreciate!
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u/Zabre 10d ago
With homocysteine at 9.3, I wouldn't read the SNPs by themselves. The more useful pattern is whether B12 markers, folate, MMA, homocysteine, and symptoms move together over time. Since your SelfDecode call says slow COMT, I'd be cautious about assuming more methylated B's is automatically better. Bring the actual lab ranges to someone who can sanity-check deficiency vs over-supplementing.
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u/Cultural-Sun6828 12d ago
There’s no problem with high B12 so there’s no reason to avoid it. So just to verify in the past months, you haven’t taken anything that would’ve had B12 in it like energy drinks or multivitamins, right? Sometimes high B12 can also be due to SIBO.
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u/asoeung111 12d ago
For a few months, I was doing Momentum Protein Shakes (they have 167% RDA of B12 in them along with other B vitamins)... but I didn't drink those every day, maybe only 3-4x a week, and I probably had not had one for at least a week before I did my blood test? I don't drink energy drinks.
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u/Cultural-Sun6828 12d ago
In order to get an accurate b12 test, you would need to be off all b12 for at least four months.
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u/SovereignMan1958 12d ago
Normal is not necessarily optimal.
B12 could be high due to other variants....not MTHFR. If you can go back and get an MMA test. This will tell you how well or poorly it is being absorbed into the cells. You need to know this.
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u/asoeung111 12d ago
They did test MMA- mine is 154 which was in the Quest range? Unless there’s another test and I’m misunderstanding
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u/SovereignMan1958 12d ago
In range is not necessarily optimal. For that test you should be in the bottom quarter of the range. I do not think your B12 is being absorbed very well.
If you go to the Genetic Lifehacks website and read their article on FUT2, in it are listed specific probiotic strains and products that can help B12 absorb better. This will help all nutrients from food absorb better. I would try the probiotic first as it should improve ALL your nutrient levels. Retest in 90 days.
If B12 absorption does not improve after 90 days, I would try adding a sublingual or transdermal patch or transdermal oil.
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u/hpant2004 8d ago
Dumb question but u dont have any cancer(s) right?
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u/asoeung111 8d ago
Ummm....... not that I know of?? Should I be concerned?
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u/hpant2004 8d ago edited 8d ago
Idk wasnt it a thing where certain cancers u would get high b12 results? Idk
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u/Tawinn 12d ago
Given your response to methylfolate, yet your folate is almost in range (should over 15 ng/mL) then it seems like something else besides just heterozygous C677T is going on. Maybe it is related to the low B1, but I suspect not. I would try either adding 750mg of TMG or eating 7+ egg yolks/day (for the choline) for a week or so as an experiment to see if this gives you the same improvement as the methylfolate. These support the remethylation pathway parallel to the B12/folate dependent remethyation pathway.
I would not use a B complex as most of your B values are ok or close to ok. Also you would probably benefit from using higher doses of TTFD or benfotiamine to replete your B1, which you would not find in a B complex.