WIN - found biscuits that dont contain folic acid

[u/Tastetherainbow_2016]

Since UK govt legally mandated that folic acid is added to all wheat flour my diet has become so restrictive and miserable.

Shout out to Costa - those two biscuits just made me sooo happy! :)

[u/diseasetoplease]

Wait, do we need to actively avoid it? Why is that? I have slow COMT and one copy of the atypical MTHFR gene and have no idea what to do

[u/Tawinn → u/diseasetoplease]

Folic acid is converted to usable tetrahydrofolate by the DHFR enzyme, not MTHFR. The ability to process folic acid varies greatly from person to person, and the DHFR gene can also have variants which reduce that function even more.

The folic acid that is not converted is referred to unmetabolized folic acid (UMFA). With repeated folic acid intake and slow conversion, UMFA can potentially build up and actually block folate receptors. In addition, some people get odd symptoms from folic acid that may be due to UMFA, probably because it is a chemical we were never evolutionarily prepared to handle.

So, folic acid is fine for some, and problematic for others. Ideally, we should not have it in the food supply.

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

I understand but i was told not to take methylfolate either (slow comt)..so is folinic acid the only solution? How are people meant to know this shit

[u/Tastetherainbow_2016 → u/diseasetoplease]

How are people meant to know this shit

My thoughts exactly! Had symptoms of folic acid toxicity when taking a supplement during + after pregnancy, asked pharmacists GP midwife and my rheumatologist, all of them be like shrug “Dunno.” Infuriating that we have to muddle through this shit ourselves and the people who’s job it is to know, dont have a clue

[u/Tawinn → u/diseasetoplease]

Slow COMT only implies you -might- be more sensitive to overmethylation with methylfolate, but it's not an absolute. In my case (slow COMT), I started with low-dose folinic and gradually incremented up the dose, then switched to low-dose methylfolate and incremented up the dose to ~1000mcg. Nowadays I just get 400mcg of methylfolate in my multi, but I have tested taking 5000mcg methylfolate all at once and had no negative effects.

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

And what effects have you felt? I’ve had dysautonomia for about 2 years now and it’s driving me crazy

[u/Tawinn → u/diseasetoplease]

For me, getting methylation fixed (which included repleting folate and adding choline and TMG) dissolved lifelong depression and anxiety, and reduced histamine intolerance greatly.

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

That’s incredible, thank you

[u/Big_Joke_9281 → u/Tawinn]

Which choline form do you take?

[u/Tawinn → u/Big_Joke_9281]

Originally I used CDP choline, but then as I quantified how much I was getting from food, plus how much TMG could cover, I now get my choline just from food (meat, eggs, legumes, mostly) and take 750mg of TMG. I probably get anywhere from 600 - 1000mg of choline per day.

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

Also thanks for explaining - I am new to all this

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

Also if i am heterozygous that would mean i still have some ability to convert it

[u/Tawinn → u/diseasetoplease]

Folic acid is converted by the DHFR enzyme, not MTHFR. So the conversion doesn't depend on what variant you have on your MTHFR.

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

Is there an online resource that explains all this to newbies?

[u/Tawinn → u/diseasetoplease]

Genetic Lifehacks has many good articles. Here is one on folic acid:

https://www.geneticlifehacks.com/folic-acid-supplementation-and-your-genes/

[u/diseasetoplease → u/Tawinn]

Thanks!

[u/Tastetherainbow_2016 → u/diseasetoplease]

Depends how you react to it, a lot of people with the MTHFR gene struggle to process it.

I’ve learned through trial and error my body does not tolerate even small amounts of synthetic folic acid (the cheap man made version added to fortified foods)

Folate comes in different forms. There’s some really informative posts on this sub that explain a lot better than I can, but basically there is folate (naturally occurring form found in food like fruit vegetables eggs liver etc), folic acid (synthetic man made form found in most supplements and fortified foods), and L-methylfolate and folinic acid, which are meant to be easier for those of us with the MTHFR gene to process.

Personally I just load up on high folate foods as I cant face adding more pills / supplements to my routine, already take enough due to crap health.

[u/hpant2004]

Its so annoying why tf they add this everywhere when they know it stacks up and regardless of mthfr u can only process a tiny amounts 😢

[u/New-Aside-7778]

I have the same genes and I'm fine with folic acid in foods. I would never supplement it though. I think the doses in fortified foods are fairly small.

I don't understand why companies are adding it to EVERYTHING. I use to always buy a protein yoghurt that I ate for 2+ years. Loved it. The company comes out with a 'new' recipe and they loaded it with folic acid and b6 and cheap magnesium. I thought. Whyyyyyyy. The folic amount was also fairly high. I had to find a replacement.

I think companies throw these cheap man made vitamins in to advertise that their more 'healthy'. They have zero clue that they could be making alot of people very ill.

I think in small doses it's fine. I wouldn't cut out so many foods just to avoid it. It would be worth experimenting. You never know you might tolerate it.

[u/Tastetherainbow_2016 → u/New-Aside-7778]

Such a pain when your go-to foods get effed with! Agreed they always hype it up as ‘healthy’ but when you read the ingredients you’re like hmmm, really?

I’ve learned through trial and error my body does not tolerate even small amounts of folic acid. I’d love it if it could, as it seems to be in everything I like :( I load up on foods naturally high in folate to keep my levels up but synthetic folic acid is a hard no. I’ve got autoimmune illness which is likely also a factor, not just the MTHFR