Is folic acid poison to pregnant women?

If you’re a woman of childbearing age, you’ve heard—likely more than once—the message. Whether it’s from special interest groups like the Spina Bifida Association, whether it’s from the buzz surrounding “Folic Acid Awareness Week” every January, or whether it’s your own OBGYN handing you supplements, the message is ubiquitous: You need to be taking folic acid.

They’re (mostly) right... Just not when you have MTHFR

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/03/is-folic-acid-poison-to-pregnant-women.html

More good news

The scan was perfect. It had a heart beat and was exactly the size of 7 weeks and 1 day.

Not sure if my doctor 100% subscribed to this MTHFR theory, I think he thinks it was good luck - there's nothing wrong with me after all. Anyway, I'm pregnant and thrilled about it.

Fingers crossed.

About to go for first scan

Don't really know what to think or feel :-(  Sitting in the doctors waiting room now, hoping the tearful feeling is pregnancy emotions. Might have to let my husband do the talking.

Fingers crossed we are still on track.

Best stop writing, not helping the head space.

Yes! Still Pregnant

Yes! Still pregnant.

hCG is 24527, just where it should be.

Thank you god.

My DNA Test Results

Yesterday I got my DNA results, and they were extremely revealing.

Firstly, my husband was also found to be homozygous MTHFR, which is significant. My naturopath was happy that she had also put him onto methyl folate and methyl B12 before our IVF incase he was positive. Thank goodness for that.

My results were:
Type 2 Diabetes - High risk for all except 1 gene. 1/7
Inflammation. - High risk for all except 1 gene. 1/3
Food responses - sodium sensitivity, moderately increased risk of celiac disease, reduced Coq10, decreased levels of Omega 3/6
Vitamins - insufficient in all but 1. 1/6
Methylation - high risk in all but 1. 1/6
Choline deficiency
Oxidative stress - high risk in all 3 genes.
Liver detoxification - high risk in all but 1 gene. 1/5

My naturopath said it was no wonder that my body couldn't hold a pregnancy, with my MTHFR, my husbands MTHFR, my poor methylation system, liver function, and also poor ability to absorb vitamins. She said all these things together is a recipe for miscarriage. (Not that there's actually anything wrong with me. I have zero symptoms of any of these things, and a doctor would give me a clean bill of health - it's just based on what my DNA says.)

So I now have all the right vitamins. Fingers crossed this pregnancy continues. If it doesn't, I'm still convinced we are on the right path. We started the vitamins close to egg collection when we should have started them 3 months out from egg collection so that our DNA was right. Anyway, we'll see. I'm feeling nervous about Friday.

The place I got my DNA tested through was Smart DNA in Australia: http://www.smartdna.com.au

My hCG still rising

OMG, hCG is still rising. It's 5131, just where it should be said the nurse.

What a fantastic feeling.

Thank you God!

Explaining MTHFR in relation to pregnancy

This is an excellent video in relation to pregnancy:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=u2APDYUNUrQ

Explaining how MTHFR fits into the Methylation process

The Methylation Cycle is a biochemical pathway that manages or contributes to a wide range of crucial bodily functions, including:

• Detoxification
• Immune function
• Maintaining DNA
• Energy production
• Mood balancing
• Controlling inflammation

All these processes help the body respond to environmental stressors, to detoxify, and to adapt and rebuild. That’s why lowered methylation function may contribute to many, major chronic conditions, including:

• Cardiovascular Disease
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Adult neurological conditions
• Autism and other spectrum disorders
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Miscarriages, fertility, and problems in pregnancy
• Allergies, immune system, and digestive problems
• Mood and psychiatric disorders
• Aging

Methylation is involved in almost every bodily biochemical reaction, and occurs billions of times every second in our cells. 

MTHFR plays a crucial role in this cycle, and when there's an MTHFR deficiency we get into trouble. 

I get confused by all the big words they use, but I think this video does a good job at explaining how essential MTHFR is to the methylation cycle and hence the functioning of our body.

It's simple, short, and easy to understand.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ah2oHgQvj3A

Here's a diagram of the methylation system:

Here is a diagram that shows how both folic acid and natural folate need to be broken down to 5-methylfolate before it can be used in your system, and how if you have the MTHFR gene mutation it can't do this:

Explaining MTHFR - Video

These videos are quite long but do an extremely good job of explaining the MTHFR issue. Worth watching.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA8GUIRqIkE

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BM3RXJ28I2Q

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nYoGrqdMCaU

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JEeedfavEeE

Why didn't someone tell me this 8 years ago?

Here's a shorter video that explains it as well:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=REYL1kEv7A4

Morning Sickness

I have been pregnant so many times I've become acutely aware of how morning sickness feels.

I can usually tell if I'm pregnant or not 5 days after IVF implantation. A couple of times my IVF pregnancy test has come back negative, but I know I was pregnant based on how I was feeling (just an early loss).

My morning sickness feeling was different to nauseous, it was like my body was anxious and discontent. Like it was screaming out for me to eat something, but I wasn't sure what... And nothing I did eat would make it go away. In recent miscarriages, I could tell the day I had miscarried based on this feeling. 

This time, with my new active folate and vitamin B medication, I was convinced I wasn't pregnant. I felt completely normal after IVF, with no 'morning sickness' feeling what so ever. You can imagine the reaction when the nurse told me I was positive over the phone... 

Now I am 5 weeks, and still no 'morning sickness', which is extremely unusual for me. I have experienced a little nauseous in the car, very mild. The feeling is very different to before. I wonder if this is because before, my body was deficient and it was screaming out for what it needed, and because it didn't get what it needed it miscarried.

It's an interesting thought.

My Daily Medication - Undiagnosed Recurrent Miscarriage

So as a MTHFR homozygous C667T, undiagnosed recurrent miscarriage patient, I'm doing the following daily:

• X1 Clexane injection
• Woman's multi vitamin, by Thorne (L5-methylfolate on the label)
• Liquid 5-methylfolate & vitamin B especially designed for pregnancy
• Baby Aspirin... most doctors tell me to take this daily, yet head of the recurrent miscarriage unit in London (Dr Lesley Regan) told me not to take it. For his reason, I take a baby aspirin every second or third day.
• Loads of other vitamins prescribed by the naturopath
• Standard post IVF drugs (Cronone, Progynova)

Then, with my diet I do the following:

• Avoid anything with synthetic folic acid in, this is most multivitamins (note: in Australia and New Zealand the government kindly puts it in bread)
• Eat organic foods, especially vegetables
• Organic house cleaners and makeup (People with MTHFR struggle to get toxins out of their body)
• Try to avoid fish with high metal content in them (we MTHFR sufferers struggle with too much metal in our body as well)
• I have been going hard on green vegetables, eating huge amounts of them. Need to get as much natural folate into my body as possible, because MTHFR mutation means my body only absorbs 10-20% of what it should.

Nearly all doctors I've seen over the past 8 years haven't known/explained the difference between 5- methylfolate, folate, and folic acid. That's probably 15+ doctors specializing in fertility.

Here are photos of my multivitamin with active folate and active vitamin B, so you can see what to look out for.

Multivitamin with active folate in:

Active vitamin B:

http://blog.healthpost.co.nz/2014/new-generation-b-complex-best-pregnancy-vitamins/

I'm still pregnant and hCG levels increasing

My hCG levels are increasing... They are at 440. I'm five weeks on Monday.

Please dear God, let my naturopath be right.

Just had a huge dinner of organic green vegetables.

Next test is Friday next week.

Feeling happy.

MTHFR gene mutation and Folic Acid - the wrong combination!

Over the past 8 years, infertility treatment has taken me all around the world. I've been treated in 4 different countries by countless doctors... Some leaders in their field. There's not a single infertility test I have not undergone. I'm undiagnosed.

Last month I visited a naturopath (had only been to medical doctors up until then). She knew a lot about the MTHFR gene mutation (which 40% of all people have, and I have). She told me to stop taking folic acid, because when you have MTHFR gene mutation, folic acid is not a good solution, especially when you are homozygous. 

Folic acid is ineffective at best, and furthers your condition at worst. 

MTHFR sufferers have a decreased ability to metabolize folic acid and other B vitamins, because they struggle to convert folate to active folate which is what your body actually needs. Folic acid is synthetic folate. What MTHFR sufferers should be taking is methylfolate which is the name of active folate. 

With MTHFR gene mutation, you need to take high levels of active folate, and active vitamin B. Big emphasis on the word active. You can tell it's active if it has 'methyl' in front of it. Most over the counter vitamin B isn't active, and synthetic folic acid, referred to as 'folic acid', is not only not active but also blocks your receptors so natural folate can't enter your system. This is essential if you want to have a baby. Again, all this only applied to people with the MTHFR gene mutation (40% of the population). 

Last month I stopped taking synthetic folic acid. See the products I changed to. 

This month I am pregnant. 

Tomorrow I have another hCG reading. After 14 miscarriages and failed IVFs, I'm feeling optimistic. 

Just off to have another plate full of spinach, as instructed by the naturopath.

P.S. Most doctors don't seem to know about the MTHFR gene mutation. To date, no IVF or infertility doctors have told me about active folate vs synthetic folic acid. 

Here are some links you might find interesting:
http://www.bellybelly.com.au/pregnancy/mthfr-is-the-mthfr-gene-mutation-affecting-your-pregnancy/

http://www.mthfrsupport.com.au/folic-acid-vs-5-mthf-debate/

http://doctordoni.com/2014/04/folic-acid-and-mthfr-could-you-have-a-genetic-mutation.html

http://chriskresser.com/folate-vs-folic-acid/

http://wellnessmama.com/27148/mthfr-mutation/

Undiagnosed Recurrent Miscarriages

I'm a recurrent miscarriage sufferer.

To be honest, I'm beginning to loose count. I think it's been 11, with a couple of failed IVFs thrown in, I'm now onto my 14th either miscarriage or failed IVF. Though, I guess it isn't failed or miscarried yet. Fingers crossed. 

Don't know why but I remain optimistic.

I'm 40 years old, have been married and struggling to have a family for 8 years. Everything about me is healthy. No serious illness, no obvious reasons as to why... Though I have the MTHFR gene mutation, homozygous. 40% of all humans have some kind of MTHFR gene mutation.

It's something they take seriously in terms of miscarriage, and have been treating with folic acid and plain (non active) vitamin B - but that may well be my problem. Recently a naturopath told me that folic acid is an enemy if you have MTHFR, and you need to be on bioactive vitamin B. Rather than taking folic acid you should be on 5-methylfolate. 

So my miscarriages have been tough, some are fine but others have been at 17, 12, 9 and 8 weeks. I've had a few DNCs, delivered a dead baby, been operated on untold times, have a black a bruised stomach from so many injections (Clexane mainly), and have been subject to steroids which are the worst of all.

It pretty much feels like I'm in infertility jail. I've got to be careful with what I eat, the naturopath says I should be organic. After every IVF I need to treat my body as if it's pregnant (diet, hygiene, no gardening, meat, activities, careful at restaurants etc). Seeing I have back to back IVF these days it's constant. Then there's my job... well, you can't really have one. Miscarriages have ruined my career. Currently IVF is my full time job. 

I'm on a strict diet of medication. My morning starts with 10 different pills and a gulp of disgusting liquid. Then there's another pill at lunch, and 3 more at dinner where I also have a full plate of spinach or other greens. I then have an injection before inserting a pessory. Every second day I have this other liquid drink that comes out of a glass tube I have to crack open.

Yes I'm still married, but life seems to have lost it's fun. Hopefully that is temporary. 

http://holisticprimarycare.net/topics/topics-a-g/functional-medicine/1353-mthfr-mutation-a-missing-piece-in-the-chronic-disease-puzzle

http://mthfr.net/mthfr-mutations-and-the-conditions-they-cause/2011/09/07/

http://chriskresser.com/folate-vs-folic-acid/