What MTHFR Really Means for You and Your Child | 158

We’ve been conditioned to believe that we are born how we are born, and that’s it. That your genes are fixed. That your health is a pre-written story that you don’t get to edit. 

But what if that isn’t the full truth? 

Today we are diving into the MTHFR gene mutation. Maybe you’ve never heard of it. Maybe you’ve been tested and know you have it. Maybe you’ve been walking around believing that this mutation is a life sentence you can’t change. But what you need to know is that your genes are not your destiny. 

They are more like a blueprint. And just like building a house, you can influence how that blueprint comes to life based on the environment you create.

When you first hear “MTHFR mutation” it sounds intense. It sounds unchangeable. I’ve had so many women message me in tears after finding out they or their child have this gene mutation, convinced that something is wrong with them, that they’re broken.

But I want you to hear this with your whole heart… you are not broken. Your child is not broken.

The MTHFR mutation is not a curse. It’s not a life sentence. It’s an invitation.

And here’s something that might surprise you… it’s actually really common. Studies show that up to 60% of the population has some form of this mutation!

Okay, so before we dive into everything you need to know about this mutation, I want to slow down for a second…

If you’re someone who’s been suspecting this, or maybe you’re listening right now wondering if you or your child could have this… let’s talk about some of the early clues.

Maybe your baby was born with a little strawberry birthmark. Maybe their umbilical cord took longer than expected to fall off. Maybe you’ve noticed your child has those tiny red dots under the skin called petechiae (puh·tee·kee·uh), or struggles with sensory sensitivities, or reactions to chemicals, perfumes, or even certain foods.

Maybe you’ve dealt with chronic fatigue, skin rashes, eczema, headaches, mood swings, anxiety… and no one’s ever been able to explain why.

These are all signs that your body’s detox and methylation pathways might need extra support. That your environment - the internal one and the external one - could be impacting how your genes are showing up for you.

So let’s start with the basics.

What exactly is MTHFR? It stands for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (meth-yl-ene, tet-ra-hydro-fo-late, re-duc-tase)… which, I know, sounds complicated. But let me break it down simply.

This gene plays a huge role in a process called methylation. Think of methylation like your body’s recycling and detox system. It helps clear toxins, it supports brain function, it allows your body to process B vitamins like folate, it even helps with energy, mood, and immune health.

But when you have a mutation in this gene, your methylation process slows down. Imagine your body trying to clean up, but the recycling trucks aren’t running on schedule. Things pile up. Toxins get stuck. Inflammation builds, and your body struggles to detox efficiently.

And that’s when symptoms start showing up.

You might see things like chronic skin rashes, eczema, sensory struggles, anxiety, depression, fatigue, headaches, chemical sensitivity, infertility, even developmental delays in children.

A huge red flag is when someone reacts poorly to synthetic folic acid - you find synthetic folic acid in so many everyday foods. It’s added to fortified breads, cereals, pastas, processed snacks, and unfortunately, most prenatal vitamins.

For someone with the MTHFR mutation, synthetic folic acid can actually build up in the body because they can’t convert it into the usable form of folate their body needs. Instead of supporting the body, it clogs the system. It adds to the body's toxin load and exacerbates symptoms.

But this is where I need you to really lean in…

Just because your body has a harder time with detox, or folate conversion, or methylation, does not mean you are powerless. You can absolutely support your body so that this gene functions in your favor.

And it starts with your gut.

The health of your microbiome directly impacts how your genes express themselves. This is the part most people never hear about. We’ve been taught to believe genes are this set-in-stone, unchangeable thing. But your gut, your environment, your stress levels, your nutrition - these all influence whether a gene like MTHFR expresses as a problem… or not.

When your gut is overwhelmed with bad bacteria, yeast, mold, fungus or parasites, your body stays stuck in survival mode. Detox slows down even more. Inflammation builds. And the challenges of having this mutation feel ten times heavier.

But when you rebalance your gut, when you clear out the overgrowth, calm the inflammation, and nourish your microbiome, your entire system starts to work differently. You give your body space to detox. You help those methylation pathways function better. You literally change how your genes show up in your day-to-day life.

And I’ve seen this play out over and over again.

In my own family. In the thousands of families I’ve supported. Parents come to me terrified that their child’s MTHFR mutation means they’ll never thrive. Women come to me in tears after struggling with anxiety, skin issues, infertility, feeling like their body is failing them.

And then they start rebalancing their gut. They start shifting the internal environment. And suddenly everything changes.

Their body detoxes more efficiently. Their mind feels clearer. Their skin starts to heal. Their energy comes back. Their hormones stabilize. Their children begin to regulate emotionally, their skin calms, their sensitivities ease, and their development starts to catch up in ways they were told weren’t possible.

This is the part no one teaches us. You inherit your genes, yes. But you also inherit your environment. You inherit your microbiome. You inherit the belief that you are stuck the way you were born.

But that belief is wrong.

Your genes are not your destiny. They are your blueprint. You get to influence how they function by the environment you create inside your body.

And that’s what rebalancing your gut is all about.

Most people with the MTHFR mutation focus only on what to avoid. Avoid synthetic folic acid. Avoid certain toxins. Avoid certain medications. And yes, those things matter… but the real transformation happens when you go deeper.

When you clear the overgrowths in your gut. When you calm the inflammation. When you support your body with the right forms of bioavailable folate, nourish your nervous system, and give your detox pathways the space they’ve been asking for.

This is how you take back your power.

I don’t want you to walk away from this episode afraid of your genes. I want you to walk away knowing that you have so much more control than you’ve been taught to believe.

Because your genes are only one part of the story. Your environment, your choices, your courage to create healing… that’s the part you get to write.

And that’s exactly what you’re doing right now.

So if you or your child have been told you have the MTHFR mutation, or maybe you’re seeing symptoms and suspect it, I want you to know healing is possible.

I know how overwhelming this all feels at first. You hear words like “gene mutation” and your mind starts racing - wondering if you’ve failed, wondering if your child will be okay, wondering if healing is even possible.

But right now you have permission to quiet that internal conversation. Healing is absolutely possible. And it starts with understanding that your gut health and your environment have a direct impact on how your genes function.

This is the power of independent healing. It’s realizing that you are not at the mercy of your diagnosis, your test results, or your family history. You get to lead this. You get to change the story.

That’s exactly what I’ve seen happen over and over again. Parents who once felt defeated are watching their children thrive. Women who believed their anxiety, their infertility, their skin issues were lifelong battles… are now experiencing vibrant health simply by healing their gut and nourishing their body the way it was designed to be supported.

You can do the same.

Your genes are your blueprint. But you are the builder.

And the most powerful tool you have in shaping that blueprint is your microbiome.

So if you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the MTHFR conversation… I hope this episode reminded you that you have choices. You have power. You are capable of creating healing.

Now let’s talk about how to actually support your body or your child’s body with this mutation… what it means to rebalance your gut.

Rebalancing isn’t just about avoiding certain foods or cutting things out. It’s about creating an environment inside your body where healing becomes possible.

It means clearing the bad bacteria, yeast, mold, fungus, and parasites that are keeping your body stuck in survival mode. It means calming inflammation, replenishing your beneficial bacteria, nourishing your nervous system, and supporting your body’s natural detox pathways so those methylation processes can finally function the way they’re designed to.

If you’re supporting your child, the Ultimate option of the Children’s Gut Rebalance Kit is the most beautiful place to start. It’s gentle, effective, and designed to help their body clear overgrowths and restore balance without overwhelming their system.

If your child is under four months old and breastfeeding, the best thing you can do is focus on rebalancing your own body with the Women’s Gut Rebalance Kit. The supplements pass through your milk and gently begin supporting your baby’s microbiome alongside your own healing.

And if you’re rebalancing for yourself, whether you know you have the MTHFR mutation or you’re simply experiencing the symptoms we talked about today… the Ultimate option of the Women’s Gut Rebalance Kit is designed to walk you through exactly how to create that foundation of healing.

This isn’t about quick fixes or masking symptoms. It’s about deeply supporting your body so your genes function the way they were designed to… so you can finally experience the energy, the clarity, the emotional regulation, and the vibrant health your body is capable of.

Your biggest takeaway today is that when you heal your microbiome, you shift how your body functions on a cellular level. You change the way your genes express themselves. You give your body permission to heal.

Your child is not broken. You are not broken.

Your child is not destined for a lifetime of struggle just because of a gene mutation. You are not destined to stay stuck, anxious, inflamed, exhausted, or overwhelmed because of your genetics.

You have the power to change the environment those genes operate in.

I have the rebalance kits linked for you in the show notes. 

A transformation + questions and answers:

Okay, before we wrap up, I love closing out the podcast with answers to your questions and your transformations. This is my favorite way to stay connected and support you, no matter where you are in your healing journey.

If you want to submit a question, I open up a question box every month in my Instagram stories and inside our private community. Watch for those, send your questions, and make sure you are subscribed to the podcast so you are sure to hear the answer.

Now let’s get into it. A transformation, a question from someone who has never rebalanced, and a question from someone currently rebalancing…


I want to start with the most incredible reminder of why we do this work.

Transformation) A mama in The Rebalancing Collective (our private community for women and mamas rebalancing) shared that her 11-month-old is on day 116 of the Rebalance and still passing liver flukes. She said, 'Saying this to motivate you to KEEP GOING. It takes time and lots of patience, but I promise it’s worth it! Don’t give up!' She attached a before and now picture that I will have on the shownotes page for you to see. 

And I want to echo her words - healing deep-rooted imbalances isn’t overnight. But when you stay the course, the transformation happens. This is the real deal foundational healing we are here for!

Question 1 “Could toe walking in toddlers be linked to the gut?” 

"Many parents have been surprised to see toe walking completely resolve while rebalancing the gut. When the nervous system calms, motor patterns often shift. Supporting the gut can absolutely help.

Question 2 “Is allergy testing necessary? When would you test? Can food allergies really resolve?”

This is such an important question, and I want to really help you connect the dots, because this one really goes against everything we have ever been taught. 

The first thing I want to say is, testing isn’t always wrong but it’s often premature and therefore results are unreliable. So many allergy tests show everything lighting up, not because the body is truly allergic to all those foods, but because the gut is out of balance which causes a lot of inflammation which puts the immune system on high alert, and your or your child’s body reacts to everything.

When the gut lining is compromised (what is often referred to as leaky gut), undigested food particles slip through into the bloodstream. The immune system sees those particles as invaders and reacts. This triggers inflammation, skin flares, digestive symptoms, even behavioral issues.

And then what happens? You get testing done, and suddenly eggs, dairy, gluten, nuts, strawberries - you name it, all come back flagged. But again, what is actually happening is that most of those food reactions aren’t rooted in the food itself. They’re rooted in an overwhelmed, imbalanced gut.

So I always tell families - start with rebalancing. Heal the gut. Eliminate the overgrowths of bad bacteria, yeast, mold, fungus, parasites and even some viruses while restoring the good bacteria. 

When you do this, you reduce inflammation, strengthen the gut lining, and the body stops reacting to so many foods it once couldn’t tolerate. We see this again and again in families rebalancing -  food sensitivities fading, eczema clearing, bellies softening, and children and even adults eating foods they couldn’t touch before.

There are, of course, rare cases of true, life-threatening, genetic allergies that require indefinite avoidance. But for the vast majority of families, testing is more helpful after rebalancing, when you’re working from a healed foundation and can clearly see what’s left.

So yes, many food reactions resolve. Your child’s body is designed to thrive. It’s not broken. It’s just been overwhelmed. Rebalancing gives the body the support it’s been asking for all along.

If you’re reading this and thinking “I want this for my family”, the Ultimate option of the Gut Rebalance Kits and the full process I guide you through in the accompanying course are waiting for you. You and your child can thrive!