Homocysteine & Bread

 HOMOCYSTEINE & BREAD

Homocystine is key metabolic marker for methylation, inflammation, and neurological health.

So let me tell you about homocysteine – because the chances are, nobody has. It’s an amino acid your body produces naturally, and in small amounts it’s fine. But when levels creep up, it becomes a problem. Elevated homocysteine is linked to inflammation, cardiovascular risk, cognitive decline, and a whole cascade of issues that functional medicine practitioners have been flagging for years. Here’s where it gets interesting – and personal.

When you eat white bread, you’re not just eating empty calories. White flour has been stripped of its natural B vitamins and then “fortified” with synthetic folic acid. For many people, that’s manageable. But for a significant portion of the population, there are genetic variations that mean their bodies simply cannot process synthetic folic acid efficiently. First, it has to pass through DHFR (dihydrofolate reductase) – and some people have variants that slow this enzyme right down, causing synthetic folic acid to build up unprocessed. Then, even if it gets through that gate, it needs MTHFR to convert it into the active methylfolate your body actually uses. Variants in MTHFR – which may affect up to 40% of the population – create a second bottleneck. The result? Synthetic folic acid accumulates, unused, while the methylation cycle that should be converting homocysteine back into useful methionine stalls. Homocysteine rises. Inflammation follows.

I developed Proven™ bread because this isn’t abstract science to me – it’s my genetics. I’m neurodivergent, and when I had my own DNA tested, I discovered I carry variants that compromise my ability to process synthetic folic acid. Suddenly, decades of research into fermentation and nutrition snapped into sharp focus. This is why I’ve spent years formulating bread that actually supports methylation rather than disrupting it.

Proven™ Bread includes lentils and other legume flours specifically because they’re rich in natural folate – the form your body can actually use, regardless of your DHFR or MTHFR status. Natural folates bypass that first bottleneck entirely. We use long fermentation because the science shows it significantly increases the bioavailability of these folates, unlocking nutrition that would otherwise pass straight through you. This isn’t a happy accident – it’s deliberate, evidence-based formulation designed to support the methylation cycle and, in turn, help manage homocysteine levels.

This is bread developed with your biochemistry in mind. Not a supplement. Not a workaround. Just real bread, properly made, doing what bread should have been doing all along.

COULD PROVEN BREAD HELP SUPPORT ADHD?

This is a question I get asked all the tine. The MTHFR-neurodivergence connection is real. Research shows higher prevalence of MTHFR variants in autistic, ADHD, and other neurodivergent populations. It’s not the whole picture, but it’s a significant piece. As a neurodivergent person with MTHFR variants, I wanted bread that worked for my biochemistry so this was one of the main focuses of Proven as I developed it. I can’t make health claims about Proven™ – that’s not how this works, and honestly, I wouldn’t want to. But what I can tell you is why I made it the way I did. I developed this bread specifically to boost nutrition and bioavailability – choosing ingredients that provide the cofactors needed for genetic variants that are particularly common in people with ADHD and other neurodivergent conditions. Long fermentation, legume flours, natural folates. Every choice was deliberate. I made this bread for my biochemistry. It just happens that a lot of people share it. So here some of the things that I took into consideration when developing Proven.

Methylation drives neurotransmitter synthesis. Dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine – they all depend on proper methylation. When the cycle is compromised by folate processing issues, neurotransmitter production can be affected. This matters for mood, focus, executive function – the things many neurodivergent people already find challenging.

Homocysteine and the brain. Elevated homocysteine isn’t just a cardiovascular marker – it’s linked to cognitive difficulties, anxiety, depression, and neuroinflammation. Conditions that frequently co-occur with neurodivergence.

So Proven Bread is formulated to:

• Help manage homocysteine
• Provide natural folates (bypassing DHFR/MTHFR bottlenecks)
• Support methylation

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MORE ON BREAD & HOMOCYSTEINE

Homocysteine is a sulphur-containing amino acid produced during the metabolism of methionine, an essential amino acid found in dietary protein. Under healthy conditions, it is recycled via two primary routes: remethylation (back to methionine) and transsulfuration (into glutathione-building compounds).

The remethylation process is dependent on the enzyme MTHFR (methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase), which converts folate into its active form, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF). This bioavailable folate donates a methyl group to homocysteine, converting it back into methionine with the help of vitamin B12. If this pathway is impaired—particularly in individuals with common MTHFR polymorphisms such as C677T—homocysteine levels may rise, contributing to systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, and compromised mental and cardiovascular health.

Elevated homocysteine (hyperhomocysteinaemia) is associated with impaired neurotransmitter function, reduced methylation capacity, and increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, cognitive decline, and infertility.

Clinical relevance in BALM

Within the BALM Protocol, regulating homocysteine is a key therapeutic target—particularly in those with MTHFR SNPs and related neurodivergent traits. Fermented, fibre-rich bread made using the BALM method supports this regulation on multiple levels:

• Botanical Blends: Our botanical flours are formulated to include naturally methylated and folate-rich ingredients such as nettle, seaweed, legumes, and wild greens—all shown to support homocysteine clearance.
• Enhanced Bioavailability through Fermentation: Long, slow fermentation enhances the release of B vitamins, including folate, and reduces phytates that otherwise inhibit mineral and micronutrient absorption.
• Personalisation through Nutrigenetics: The protocol integrates SNP analysis (e.g. MTHFR, COMT, UGT1A1), helping tailor bread to support methylation and detoxification pathways.
• Support for Neurodiversity: Elevated homocysteine has been observed in individuals with neurodivergent conditions, including ADHD and autism. Balancing homocysteine may help restore neurotransmitter equilibrium and improve mood, sleep, and cognitive function.

Proven Bread is specifically designed to support these pathways—by delivering bioavailable nutrients, fermented diversity, and gentle, sustained metabolic support with every slice.

Related terms

methylation,
MTHFR,
folate,
B vitamins,
betaine,
choline,
fermentation,
neurotransmitters,
Proven Bread,
neurodiversity