The Mindful Migraine

OK, heads up – swear word coming up. When I first saw the term “MTHFR gene” in a wellness book, my mind instantly (and unnecessarily) filled in the blanks with vowels and came up with the rude phrase “mother-f*ckr gene”.

Sorry.

[I blame it on the self-help shelf at the library which is FULL of books with titles that are all a variety of “f*ck this sh!t” – which seemed rebellious and motivational when the trend first started, but now feels a bit cliche and cringe…]

I’d never heard of the bad@$$ MTHFR gene before, so I closed the book I was reading and got googly. Turns out the initials stand for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase.

That’s a mouthful!

What I was most interested in, is whether this gene had anything to do with migraines, given that migraines often have a hereditary (and therefore genetic) component.

Turns out it does… but only for some people… and the impact is not huge.

According to an Australian government health website pdf (here), the MTHFR gene is involved in converting the vitamin folate into a form the body can use (methyl-folate). Variants in the gene are very common in the community and do not usually cause any health problems assuming there is sufficient folate in your diet. If you do have the variant (discovered after genetic testing is done), then you should eat a well-balanced diet with foods high in B6, B12 and folate, and avoid lifestyle factors that can reduce folate metabolism, such as smoking, coffee and alcohol consumption.

Still confused about what the detrimental side effects were, I went looking to see if any of the migraine sites had any information.

Migraine Again says that when mutations occur in the MTHFR gene, folate metabolism might be impaired, which causes homocysteine to accumulate, which in turn may irritate nerves and damage the lining of blood vessels. High levels of homocysteine can lead to damage in the lining of your arteries, coronary artery disease, and blood clots — all of which increase the risk of stroke and heart attacks. Because of this vascular-related impact, they too wondered if migraines might be a symptom.

They suggest that YES there is an association between the mutation and migraines, especially for those patients who have migraines with auras – BUT – that does not mean that the mutation causes migraines. The gene is related to an increased chance of migraines, but does not guarantee its development. Likewise, you can get migraines and NOT have the mutation.

[I guess it’s the same as saying that 2/3rds of migraine patients are women, so migraines and women are closely associated. But that does not mean that being female causes migraines, or that all women are guaranteed to get migraines. Make sense?]

In fact, the article reinforces what the government site said, noting mutations are common, and 9% of the population have a double-mutation, meaning they picked up the gene from both their mother and their father’s DNA. Many more in the population have picked up the mutation in one copy from one parent. The fact that it is quite common is why not many doctors worry about testing for it or include the results in patient treatment plans.

[One research paper I read (here) tested blood samples from 164 unrelated and healthy donors and found: “The frequencies of 677CC, CT and TT [the ‘mutant’] genotypes among subjects from the population were 40.85%, 53.05% and 6.1%, respectively”.]

Given it apparently plays a small role in a small number of migraine patients, the doctors in the article suggest you focus instead on ‘lifestyle optimization’, trigger management, and finding the preventative and acute therapies which best suit you.

If you are interested in reducing the MTHFR risk without going for a test, they recommend increasing your intake of vitamins B12, B6 and folate (B9) which all help break down homocysteine, and can be found in leafy green vegetables.

Interestingly – I just had a blood test which found I had a deficiency in B12… hmmm… but don’t forget that I have also posted in the past that you need to be cautious with your vitamin B6 intake, as too much can be toxic (read more here).

DISCLAIMER – remember that I am not a doctor or dietician – so before you make any changes to your diet or purchase any supplements, please speak to your own medical provider to receive personalized feedback that suits your existing condition and current medication intake.

DOUBLE DISCLAIMER – folate is often discussed in association with pregnancies, and for those looking to get pregnant, because it is essential in the development of the baby’s spine, brain and nervous system – please, please, please, speak to a doctor if this relates to you and DON’T assume social media or the internet will have the right information for you.

To validate my point that the internet does not always have your best interests at heart, other sites I visited leaned more heavily into the ‘associated risks’ of the mutation leading to migraines, seemingly motivated by fear more than facts. One site encouraged you to solve your migraine pain (autism, fertility issues and more) through MTHFR genetic testing, but it included some super-iffy AI-infographics for migraine management with people with glowing eyeballs and bar graphs with gibberish labels. This site, and others, offered at-home DNA tests, some which seemed to send your test to other ancestry-related-companies, and others which promised an expert would review your results and get back to you in a few weeks with a diet plan.

[Pardon me, but is anyone else getting mild Theranos vibes??]

As I’ve mentioned before, knowledge is power without a doubt, BUT a lot of the websites that I visited sold genetic tests or supplements, so you really need to do your homework with your eyes wide open.

The MTHFR gene doesn’t sound (to me) like it is the ‘smoking gun’ of migraine cause or recovery, but if you are interested in finding out more, talk to your doctor for advice that is right to you.

If it really is a game-changer and I missed the point, I’m happy to be proven wrong by any doctors or geneticists out there, or you can take a look at the scientific research papers yourself to reach your own conclusions: MTHFR migraine – Search Results – PMC.

If you live with migraine and were hoping this might be ‘the cure’, take heart, we are all very different and it is unlikely there will be a one-size-fits-all solution, but the recommendations above hold a lot of merit; see if you can’t improve your lifestyle to be as healthy as possible, try to manage your triggers (use a trigger tracker (here) if you don’t already), and work with your doctor to find the best therapies for you-nique YOU.

If the idea of being a patient patient still leaves you feeling deflated – reach out to me on my CONTACT page for a chat – you’re not alone.

Take care taking care,

Linda x

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PS – Kelly Richardson is a bioenergetic wellness professional, and she has been interviewed by Michelle Greenwell for her Migraine Awareness Month podcast series – have a look at this great interview here: S6 E8 Migraine Awareness: Understanding the Body’s Signals with Kelly Richardson

PPS – if you missed my interview with Michelle, then here I am talking about healing metaphors (and sitting a bit too close to the camera in my excitement – sorry!):