Essential Therapy, Redruth (2025)

13/08/2025

Should you get an ice pack or a bottle of hot water when treating an injury. Is a hot water bag superior to an electronic heating pad? What about cold or hot swelling? For what length of time should I even use these? Hello, everyone. We're addressing a very prevalent problem today that involves applying heat and ice to alleviate discomfort. Please consult your physician if you have a health issue that requires medical attention. In an emergency, call an ambulance or visit the closest emergency room. In pain management, heat and cold are extremely popular therapies. First, let's talk about sprains and strains, such as an ankle sprain. Assume that after seeing the doctor, they have determined that there is no fracture and that immobilising your ankle is not necessary. Most likely, they have instructed you to employ RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) for a few days at home. Is heat or ice more effective at relieving pain? Here's a confession before you focus entirely on one response. That inquiry is a trick. In some circumstances, any option may be the best one. In reality, you may use both heat and ice at times. Bewildered? That makes sense. To help you decide which course of action to take if you're experiencing back pain, a pulled muscle, a headache, or any other type of discomfort, we ask some of our specialists to break it down. How long has your pain been there? The answer to that question generally dictates whether to treat with heat or ice. According to sports medicine specialist Dr Anne Rex, ice is typically your best option for new injuries or aches. By narrowing blood vessels, the cold helps to minimise bruising, lessen inflammation, and numb pain. Dr Rex stresses the need for using ice to reduce pain, swelling, and inflammation as soon as possible. In fact, heat may first exacerbate an injury. But warmth can be just what you need if you're dealing with an older, persistent problem. This is because using heat promotes blood flow, which eases sore body parts and relaxes tense muscles. It can be particularly beneficial for increasing a stiff joint's range of motion. It's not a matter of picking between ice and heat for a strained or sprained muscle. The key is knowing when to employ each. If taken in the proper order, both can be important components of your recovery. Use cold therapy as soon as you sprain your ankle or pull a muscle. The ice will help numb the discomfort and minimise inflammation. You can use heat to aid with any muscular stiffness that forms around the injury once the initial inflammation has been reduced. Let's be more precise about when to use heat or ice. Ice's power. Dr Brooks says ice is much more than just a way to relieve pain. It works particularly well if your joint or muscle discomfort is accompanied by swelling, which is typical of arthritis or overuse injuries. According to Owen and Dr Brooks, using ice narrows blood vessels, which reduces blood flow to the area. Consequently, this therapy lessens the inflammation that results in swelling. Pain is one of the signs of swelling, even if it is not visible. This implies that you can lessen your pain if you can lessen your swelling. Applying an ice pack for 20 to 30 minutes is the most straightforward method of using ice for joint or muscle discomfort. Do not exceed this time limit, since over-icing can cause skin harm akin to freezer burn. Ice works wonders for lowering inflammation. Your body uses inflammation as a natural repair mechanism. Your body senses when you are injured. That dark bruise beneath the skin could be the result of a blood vessel rupturing. When inflammation occurs, your immune system initiates a response. Large quantities of blood are needed to supply oxygen, platelets to stop bleeding, and specialised cells to heal wounds and form scar tissue. This inflammatory reaction is necessary, but it is frequently overstated. Your body sends more than is strictly necessary. Elevated body temperature is one of the four traditional indicators of inflammation. When touched, the skin will feel warmer than the surrounding tissue. Inflammation manifests as swelling, redness, and pain. Applying R.I.C.E. aids in lowering this excessive inflammation. To help drain extra fluid, we elevate, compress, apply ice, and rest the affected area. In particular, ice reduces swelling by narrowing the blood arteries that provide blood to the affected area. Additionally, it exerts a numbing effect by preventing the brain from receiving pain signals from the nerves. Keep your skin away from direct ice at all times. Avoid leaving the ice pack on for longer than 20 minutes at a time, and place a towel or other piece of cloth between it and your skin. You can apply ice many times a day—three, four, five, or even six times or more—during the first three to seven days, or until the swelling and discomfort subside. Ice helps with more than just sprains. In addition, it works well for toothaches, hip discomfort, trochanteric bursitis, shoulder tendonitis, and even some headaches. Gout flare-ups are one kind of arthritis that react very effectively to ice. Any kind of ice pack is effective. Use a fancy reusable gel pack or grab some ice cubes in a bag.

When would you pick heat, then? First and foremost, do not apply heat if there are symptoms of active inflammation, such as warmth, redness, swelling, or severe discomfort, since this may exacerbate the condition. Heat works wonders for sore muscles. Suppose you are icing your knee due to an acute injury. To protect the joint, the surrounding muscles may tense and contract, which could result in the development of painful trigger points. In this case, you might freeze the swollen knee and provide heat to the strained muscles at the same time. Alternatively, you can keep applying heat alone to the knee's muscles until they relax after a week or so, once the inflammation has decreased. After an accident, tight muscles might remain that way for weeks and require assistance to relax. I also advise using heat to assist in lubricating tight and creaking joints, especially in the morning, for chronic inflammatory conditions like osteoarthritis. In fact, there isn't much proof that ice helps with low back pain, although there is some evidence that heat can help. You can use heat for roughly twenty minutes, ideally moist heat from a hot towel, warm bath, or hot pack. It's important to avoid sleeping with an electrical heating pad on since it can result in serious burns. In the following circumstances, getting warm with therapy frequently helps. knots in muscles. Tension, stress, or overexertion can cause your muscles to knot in an excruciatingly painful way. "By increasing blood flow to the affected area, heat can help loosen things up," Dr Rex says. Warmth, especially moist heat, can be a highly useful treatment for arthritis-related joint stiffness. It lessens pain and helps to loosen them up. According to Dr Mileti, heat frequently helps patients with more severe osteoarthritis. headaches from tension. Gentle heat may be your friend if you suffer from tension headaches caused by tense muscles. It helps relax the tense shoulder and neck muscles that frequently cause severe headaches, according to Dr Estomalik. Tendinosis. Heat is frequently the most effective treatment for tendinosis, a chronic, long-term tendon condition that causes discomfort and stiffness. There is one crucial point, though. Only once the acute inflammation has subsided will the warmth be useful. cramps during the menstrual cycle. Heating the lower back or belly can frequently aid people who are having menstrual cramps and period pain. The traditional hot water bag, the handy electric heating pad, or the moist heat that pe*****tes deeply. Which one suits you the best? I am among the many people who prefer damp heat. Why? The added moisture enables the heat to deeply pe*****te your muscles and tissues. It can work better than dry heat alone and is quite calming. Simple techniques, such as dipping a towel in hot water, can provide the best moist heat. However, nothing compares to the comfort of taking a warm bath for full-body relaxation. Every technique has advantages and disadvantages, but moist heat frequently wins out if you're looking for deeply penetrating relief. baths with contrast reduce oedema. We advise a contrast bath in one particular circumstance, which involves applying hot and cold temperatures alternately to the same spot. This technique is frequently used to lessen hand or foot swelling. This is how it operates. One bucket is filled with extremely heated water (around 40 degrees Celsius or 104 degrees Fahrenheit), and the other is filled with ice-cold water. The afflicted limb is first submerged in cold water for two minutes, and then it is instantly switched to warm water for thirty seconds. For a total of fifteen minutes, they continue this cycle, always beginning and ending with the cold water. Until the swelling goes down, you can do the procedure three times a day.

Heat and cold treatments can be beneficial for cancer patients, but they must exercise extreme caution to prevent skin burns. Applying to places that are sensitive following radiation therapy or where the skin is injured or exposed should be avoided. Avoid areas with poor circulation and never apply straight to exposed skin. Their doctor should always be consulted first. Since a baby's skin is so delicate, ice packs should be avoided or used very sparingly on infants younger than six months. Ice is usually safe for older kids, but it should only be used for ten minutes at most. A warm washcloth or a heated, wet towel wrapped over a child's limb in a plastic bag can be used as heat. Importantly, never leave a youngster alone with a hot pack. Since kids might not be able to communicate their feelings, it's critical to regularly inspect their skin for any indications of burning, blistering, or redness.

Autobiographies

Anne Rex

Anne M. Rex, DO, FAOASM, is a staff physician in the Cleveland Clinic's Department of Orthopaedics' Centre for Sports Health. In addition, she serves as the team physician at Lake Catholic High School in Mentor, Ohio, and a clinical assistant professor of sports medicine at the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. In addition to being certified in family practice, Dr Rex specialised in primary care sports medicine and holds a Certificate of Added Qualification in the subspeciality of sports medicine. After exhibiting notable clinical and academic success in the field of sports medicine, she was named a Fellow of the American Osteopathic Association of Sports Medicine in 2014. Dr. Rex specialises in the medical management of numerous common orthopaedic conditions, the safe return of athletes to play, and the treatment of musculoskeletal and orthopaedic injuries associated with sports. Additionally, since sports medicine is a subspeciality that encompasses all active people at all levels, she emphasises a safe return to work, everyday living activities, and leisure sports and exercise. She collaborates closely with a range of Cleveland Clinic specialists to use a multidisciplinary approach to determine the best course of action for regaining health and avoiding further injuries.

Dr Joseph Mileti

Orthopedicist Dr. Joseph Mileti practices in Upper Arlington, Ohio, and has affiliations with several local institutions, including Wyandot Memorial Hospital and OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital. He has been practicing medicine for more than 20 years after graduating from Ohio State University's College of Medicine. Among other ailments, Dr. Joseph Mileti specialises in treating arthritis; see all of his areas of expertise.

Dr Emad Estemalik

At the Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Emad Estemalik, a prominent figure in sports science, practices headache care as a neurologist. In the organisation's Neurological Institute, he also leads and conducts research. He is knowledgeable in several facets of headache conditions, such as trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias and migraines. Furthermore, he has published research in the field of sports-related concussion management.

&Conditioning

12/08/2025

Your body may exhibit unusual symptoms indicating a need for additional vitamin B12. This video is for educational purposes only, so do speak to your doctor if you suspect a deficiency.

1. Feeling Ice Cold: One of the most common signs of a vitamin B12 deficiency is a deep chill sensation in your feet or hands. When you don't have enough B12, your body can't make healthy red blood cells to deliver oxygen, and you struggle to make enough heat, so you feel the cold right down into your bones, even when you're in a warm room. Low stomach acid or a diet low in B12-rich foods are common reasons that this can happen.

2. Vertical Ridges On Your Nails: Some people with low B12 notice that the vertical lines on their nails start to become deeper and wider. This is very common in over-50s, where the stomach makes less acid, so it isn't absorbing as much B12, and less oxygen reaches the nail matrix, which stops the nail cells from growing out properly. Drinking apple cider vinegar in water every day can help older adults to absorb more B12 from their food.

3. Heavy Tiredness: If you feel like you have a dragging tiredness, like gravity is always pulling your body down, where your muscles feel tired climbing the stairs or even carrying a small bag of groceries, and this happens even when you've had lots of sleep, salt and water. This dragging tiredness means your cells' energy factor is maybe running a little low. If you notice that eating more red meat makes you feel better, this means that you likely needed more B12 and iron.

4. Muddled Thinking: This problem is common in people who are on a plant-based diet and who don't consume enough meat or fish. You may feel down, not necessarily sad, but just very numb, blank or empty, where you can't find words or ideas, and everything takes more mental effort. You might also get sudden bursts of irritation, crying spells or mild paranoia. You see, your brain needs B12 to make neurotransmitters like serotonin, so without enough, you'll just mentally feel quite off. By the way, I'll be sharing a full set of strategies to boost vitamin B12 naturally later in this video, but before we continue, I'd be so grateful if you could like the video, subscribe and turn all notifications on so that I can keep you updated on the latest health and nutrition tips. Coming back now to sign

5. A Fast Heart Rate: Your bone marrow uses vitamin B12 to copy DNA and build new red blood cells. But if you don't have enough B12, the cells can't divide properly, and these blood cells grow too large, causing your heart to work harder to pump oxygen, causing a faster heart rate. If your pulse is above 100 beats per minute when you're at rest, it could indicate low B12 or anaemia, so it may be worth a visit to your doctor for a quick blood test.

6. Electricity Feeling: Have you ever fallen asleep on your arm, and then your hands feel all electrical and tingly? Well, this happens because you block the oxygen flow to your nerves temporarily. But with low B12, the coating that surrounds your nerves can begin breaking down, so your nerves start misfiring, and you get these little shocks, buzzes or pulsing sensations under your skin.

7. Feeling Off Balance In The Dark When the nerve coating breaks down because of low B12, you may start to walk with a wider gait or stance. You might not feel where your feet are, especially in the dark, like you can't trust your steps, or standing still with your eyes closed becomes weirdly difficult. Again, this can be improved over time by gently correcting the deficiency with B12-rich foods and remedies.

8. Ringing In The Ears: A deficiency in B12 can also slow down nerve signals from your auditory nerve, so the brain misinterprets these signals as sound, and you start to hear a high-pitched ringing or buzzing in your ears. This can also be related to low folate, which is vitamin B9, also linked with anaemia.

9. A Pale Inner Eyelid If you gently pull down your lower eyelid, the inside should appear pink or red; however, if you are low in B12, you will have less haemoglobin in your blood, which gives it a red colour. As a result, the soft inner eyelid may turn pale with a whitish tone instead of remaining red or pink.

10. A Smooth Tongue: Your tongue constantly grows new skin cells with the help of vitamin B12; however, when B12 levels are low, the surface of your tongue may become smooth or shiny, inflamed, and swollen. Additionally, people with low B12 tend to experience mouth ulcers more frequently for the same reason. A good quality B12 supplement can usually help with this.

11. Blurry Vision: B12 is needed to protect the coating around your optic nerve, so if you're low, you may get blurry vision that comes and goes, especially when you're fatigued. Many people also notice pale patches in their vision, like dead zones or just dimness and cloudiness.

12. You experience breathlessness during your speech. If you often get halfway through a sentence but feel like you run out of air and have to pause to catch your breath, know that this is an often- missed, weird sign of low B12. You see, with less B12, fewer red blood cells and less oxygen reach your vocal muscles, causing you to need that little gasp in the middle of a conversation.

13. The final but unusual sign is stomach burning. If you get a burning lower down in your stomach, which tends to go away when you eat, this is commonly linked with internal ulcers or gastritis. This is important to know, because people who have ulcers also tend to be low in B12, because your body uses it up when it's trying to heal those pockets of damage.

How can you test for vitamin B12? You can get a standard serum B12 test, which measures the total B12 in your blood, but this isn't the most accurate test. Some forms of B12 in your blood are inactive, so you could still be deficient even if the test says you are in the normal range. A more accurate test is the MMA, methylmalonic acid test. If your MMA is high, this means that your cells aren't getting enough active vitamin B12. But what causes people to have low vitamin B12 in the first place? Well, vitamin B12 is involved with hundreds of cellular reactions, from making DNA to forming red blood cells to insulating your nerves. It helps produce energy, supports methylation, and contributes to many other essential processes. The recommended daily allowance suggests that adults need between 1.5 and 2.4 mcg per day from foods; however, for most people it's just not fully absorbed. Modern functional medicine research suggests that we may need between 10 and 30 mcg from food, especially as we age, and even higher doses, between 1 and 5,000 mcg, from supplements, because only 1-2% of this vitamin gets absorbed by most people. It's estimated that now over 40% of the population has some level of a B12 deficiency, mostly because of digestive problems. The most common cause of this condition is having low stomach acid, where your stomach acid is not concentrated enough to absorb B12 properly from your food. This is especially common in people who take antacids or proton pump inhibitors for digestive issues. You might also simply not be eating enough B12-rich foods, like red meat, eggs, or fish, to meet your requirements, especially for vegans, vegetarians, or elderly people. The common diabetes medication called metformin can also block B12 absorption.

Drinking alcohol every day is a very common cause of low B12. Alternatively, changes to certain genes can affect how the body utilises B12, which means you may simply need to consume more of it. So as you can see, there are a range of different reasons that you may become deficient in B12. However, there are many strategies that you can use to raise your B12 levels, regardless of the cause. So let's have a look. Carnivores should aim to eat at least six ounces of red meat four times per week, like beef, lamb, or liver, to naturally boost their vitamin B12 levels. You can also get good doses of B12 from clams, mussels, oysters, eggs, salmon, crabs, and sardines. If you're a vegan, you might want to try chlorella powder, which is a dried sea algae and a natural source of B12. For long-term deficiencies, you might consider using a sublingual (under the tongue) supplement of B12 in its active form called methylcobalamin. At least 3000 mcg daily is the usual recommendation. Adenosylcobalamin, which your mitochondria in the cells use more frequently to produce energy, is also present in some blends. To improve absorption Before meals, drink 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar mixed with a glass of water. The vinegar strengthens the pH of your stomach, allowing you to digest and absorb more B12. Restore the Stomach Lining If you're a person who has ulcers or H. pylori infections in your stomach depleting your B12, you might consider cabbage juice and zinc alkanesine to help restore the stomach lining. I would also like to mention that if you are taking folic acid as a supplement, it can sometimes mask a B12 deficiency and even mislead your doctor. So you may wish to use the more natural form called methylfolate if you want to avoid this. The types of B12 to avoid are the common cyanocobalamin supplements that are available over the counter. These are cheaply manufactured from cyanide and bacteria and are very poorly absorbed. Stick with natural methylcobalamin, adenosylcobalamin or hydroxocobalamin for the best effects.

VITAMIN B12 MISTAKES

The big mistakes people are making with vitamin B12 supplements. Many people turn to vitamin B12 supplements to raise energy levels, to help reduce paleness in the skin, and for brain fog, nerve problems, sleep and more. But I often notice that people are making the same mistakes with vitamin B12, which makes it far less effective than it should be.

1. is using the wrong type of B12. The most common supplement form of B12 is very low quality, called cyanocobalamin. This is the type used to fortify cereals, energy drinks and common B12 supplements. This version is not the active form used by your body, and it's actually made chemically in a lab from cyanide. Your liver has to work very hard to detoxify the cyanide before it can activate and use the B12 to build red blood cells for your nerves, energy, etc. Instead, you may want to choose the natural active version of B12 called methylcobalamin, which your body can begin using immediately after taking it.

2. You might be consuming the incorrect quantity. Human beings need at least 2.4 mcg of vitamin B12 every day when it comes from food. However, when you're taking a supplement, you generally need higher doses between 1000 and 5000 mcg per day, as only 1-2% of this ingredient is fully absorbed and activated in the body.

3. You should avoid taking it at the incorrect time. Taking B12 supplements late at night can energise your body and keep you awake for hours, so it's much better to take them in the morning on an empty stomach. Vitamin B12 is water-soluble, so drinking a large glass of water with it can help deliver it from your stomach to the ileum, where it is absorbed.
4. Some individuals have a common genetic problem. Did you know that 40–60% of people can't absorb B12 properly from fortified foods or cyanocobalamin supplements? This is because of a common genetic mutation in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene. Because of this mutation you can get fatigue, mood problems and higher homocysteine levels, which increases heart disease risk as you get older. But don't worry, a simple cheek swab or blood test can tell you if you have this issue. If you do, just take natural methylcobalamin instead of the synthetic form.

5. Unable to absorb B12. You might be taking supplements and eating many B12-rich foods, but if you don't have enough stomach acid to break down the vitamin, you may not be absorbing it properly. Low stomach acid is common in people over 50, those with reflux or indigestion, and those who take antacids or PPIs often. All you need to do is drink 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar mixed in 2 cups of water before a meal. This practice naturally improves the quality of your stomach acid and helps you to absorb B12 much better.

6. Plant-based diets mean abstaining from eating meat, which is hands down the richest natural source of B12 and heme iron in the world, which is used by your body to form red blood cells. Unfortunately this is why many vegans and vegetarians suffer from long-term deficiencies, because you can't get B12 from plant-based foods, other than a little bit from sea algae like chlorella. So aim to eat unfortified nutritional yeast to help meet your natural B12 requirements. Nutritional yeast can be eaten in soups, stews, and smoothies.

7. Expecting Immediate Results Whatever you're taking B12 for, remember that it is not a medication; it's a nutrient, so it takes a little time to build up in your body and go to work. Red blood cells, for example, take between 7 and 10 days to begin increasing after you fix your B12 deficiency. Paleness, fatigue, breathlessness, and mood often improve within 2-4 weeks, and nerve repair really kicks in within 1–3 months if you're constantly supplementing and absorbing it well. So be patient.

8. Relying On The Wrong Blood Test The standard vitamin B12 serum blood test doesn't tell you whether the B12 is active or not in your blood, so it can even give you a false result saying you're in the normal range, even when you're actually deficient in the cells. Sadly the issue is often missed by the professionals, especially if you're also taking folate or folic acid, which can also mask signs of low B12 on blood tests. Alternatively, you could request a more accurate methylmalonic acid (MMA) test from your doctor. If this level is high, it means that not enough active B12 is entering the cells.

9. To ensure that vitamin B12 works properly, it is also necessary to have folate and vitamin B6. These nutrients all work together in your body like a team to make DNA, detoxify, form red blood cells, and produce brain chemicals such as serotonin, which helps protect against depression. Fortunately for you, beef liver has all three of these nutrients, making it a true superfood. But avocados, sunflower seeds, broccoli, pistachios and leafy greens can also supply lots of folate and B6. If you decide to take a supplement, use the methylated versions like methylfolate, not folic acid.

11. Taking calcium-rich foods or supplements can compete with vitamin B12 for absorption in your intestine, so it's important to not take your B12 supplements with milk, cheese, or dairy products. It's best to give it at least an hour after taking B12 before you eat dairy or take any calcium supplements. And another mistake people often make is ignoring their gut health. Certain harmful bacteria in your gut, like SIBO, can steal B12 before it gets absorbed. This is why people who are on high-fibre, plant-based diets often feel worse because the high fibre can feed bad bacteria. Using a carnivore diet for a few months with some natural methylated B vitamin supplements can usually help to balance out the gut bacteria, along with other remedies like apple cider vinegar, fasting and berberine.

So now that you've heard all this, let's take a look at the different types of vitamin B12 supplements on the market. Many ageing adults who can't absorb B12 can very well rely on 2-3 monthly injections. These usually use the form called hydroxocobalamin, which is natural and stays in the body longer, and this information is good for long-term deficiencies. But sublingual forms (under the tongue) go directly into your bloodstream and are often just as effective if used regularly. Methylcobalamin is the active, natural form, which is best for brain health, nerve repair, sleep, and energy; sublingual forms absorb very well under the tongue. Adenosylcobalamin is another active form that is best for energy production, and it helps people with chronic fatigue and neurological issues. Hydroxocobalamin is a stable, injectable form often used by doctors. This type stays in the body longer and is ideal for long-term deficiencies. Now cyanocobalamin is the synthetic version that's found in cheap supplements and fortified foods. You may want to skip this one since your liver must remove the cyanide before activating it, which is messy. You can also get it from fortified nutritional yeast, but check for natural methylcobalamin. And chlorella is a vegan source of B12 which has some active B12, but it isn't well absorbed. Side effects: Generally speaking, vitamin B12 supplements rarely cause any side effects. Since B12 is water soluble, your body usually flushes out what it doesn't need. However, some people who megadose between 5000 and 10,000 mcg daily over a long period tend to get side effects like acne and rosacea flare-ups, anxiety or restlessness. So it's best to stick with 1-3,000 mcg of a natural version like methylcobalamin if you're using it long-term.

Taking large amounts of poor-quality B12 could potentially put a strain on the liver cells over time due to that cyanide component. Occasionally, individuals may experience a mild allergic reaction to the fillers or additives found in inferior brands. But this is usually avoided by just doing your research, reading reviews, and finding a good-quality brand. And finally, for your information, I'd like to give you some of the common B12 deficiency symptoms. Such as pale skin, especially on the inner lower eyelid. Happens when you don't make enough healthy red blood cells because of low B12 or iron. Vertical nail ridges are a common issue caused by low absorption. A fast heart rate over 100 bpm is often linked to low B12. A general feeling of numbness, blankness, or emptiness could be caused by low B12, which is preventing you from making serotonin properly. Gasping for air a lot when you talk could be an issue. Blurry vision is a common sign. Low B12 can cause ear ringing and nerve starvation, which can cause tingling in the hands and feet.

Key Aspects Of Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase Deficiency

What causes it?
MTHFR deficiency is a metabolic disorder that reduces or inhibits folate (folate may be referred to as vitamin B9) metabolism. This condition is caused by a defect in the gene you inherit from your parents. This gene usually produces a substance called the MTHFR enzyme. This enzyme converts the inactive form of folate into the active form the body uses. However, due to this gene deficiency, the body cannot produce an enzyme to metabolise folate. This condition can lead to the accumulation of a harmful substance in your body called homocysteine. The MTHFR enzyme usually converts homocysteine into the amino acid methionine, an important building block for many proteins in your body. High levels of homocysteine in the blood can increase the chances of certain health risks.

How common is it?
MTHFR deficiency is the most common metabolic disorder of folate metabolism. Currently, reports indicate that 40 individuals have this disorder, and there is no increased risk between males and females.

What are the signs and symptoms?
Some of the signs and symptoms to look out for with this condition are:
Developmental delays
Low muscle tone
Seizures
Failure to thrive
Blood clots
Small head size
Ataxia
Peripheral neuropathy
Scoliosis
High urine homocysteine levels
Other symptoms associated with this metabolic disorder are mental health problems and behavioural issues.
If you have MTHFR, then this may lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and thrombosis. This is due to the high levels of homocysteine that can occur with this condition, although these diseases are rare in people with MTHFR deficiency. If your homocysteine levels are high, consider these factors that can raise them:

Smoking
Hypothyroidism
Chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure
Certain types of medication

Studies have demonstrated the harmful effects of medications like atorvastatin, fenofibrate, methotrexate, and nicotinic acid on the body when homocysteine levels are high.

Can It Be Treated?

Doses of betaine (Cystadane) have been shown to be effective in managing this condition. Betaine is an amino acid, which is involved in converting homocysteine in the blood into a less harmful form called methionine. The earlier treatment is started for this metabolic condition, the more likely you are not to experience the symptoms. Later treatment does not reverse the symptoms associated with this condition, but it can improve the severity of them. It has also been suggested that taking folate, vitamin B12, and betaine can help stop the symptoms related to methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency. For any more information regarding the management of this condition, please contact your local GP.

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