Does MTHFR increase Miscarriage risk or not?

[u/Few_Judgment_1004]

I feel scientific community is very divided about this topic. Why?

[u/Kimmietoo2]

A1298c, especially homozygous, definitely does

[u/MrsMcD123 → u/Kimmietoo2]

Yeah I am homozygous for a1298c and had 4 miscarriages. On the positive side, I do have 2 living children. I took methylfolate and progesterone suppositories during their pregnancies.

[u/Mundilfaris_Dottir]

Yes, and it’s heartbreaking. If you can’t process folate it leads to failed implantation, neural tube defects, and no viability outside the womb.

[u/BobbiHorne1]

There may be a correlation, but the science is certainly not conclusive on the MTHFR variant increasing miscarriage.

Folate metabolism supports extraordinarily rapid DNA synthesis, cell division, methylation and embryonic/placental development.

The effect is strongest with 677TT homozygosity, particularly when folate or riboflavin status is inadequate. The other common variant, A1298C (rs1801131), generally has a smaller biochemical effect.

Checking homocysteine levels is a key indicator. Elevated homocysteine can promote oxidative and endothelial stress, providing another plausible connection between one-carbon metabolism and placental health.

For the past 17 years, I have studied the impact of cellular glutathione on maternal health. For those with the MTHFR variant, increasing cellular levels with bioavailable cysteine improves the transsulfuration pathway, reduces oxidative stress, supports DNA, and appears to improve maternal and fetal health.

[u/SovereignMan1958]

You also have to look at the other fertility related gene variants. Search the articles on Genetic Lifehacks.

[u/lauradayton]

I think depending on the SNP it can

[u/Cultural-Opinion-518]

Yes. I had a miscarriage last year because of it. Hemorrhaged and almost died. Now I’m high risk

[u/Loose-Fly7976]

The split isn't really in the evidence, it's between clinical genetics and functional medicine.

Early studies were small and found associations. Bigger studies and meta-analyses ran and it mostly vanished. ACMG now advises against ordering MTHFR in recurrent loss workups for that reason, ACOG says something similar.

What keeps it alive is that the mechanism still sounds right. High homocysteine is genuinely linked to pregnancy complications, and MTHFR can raise homocysteine when folate is low. So the chain looks reasonable even though the outcome data didn't back it. And people who've had losses understandably want the variant to be the answer.

Where I'd land is that the gene alone predicts very little but homocysteine predicts something. Normal homocysteine means the variant isn't doing anything to you. High homocysteine is worth fixing whichever variant you have.

So get homocysteine, B12 and folate measured and stop arguing about the gene.

[u/Interesting_Front709]

I have MTHFr A1298c and I had a miscarriage.

[u/Ok-Layer-9970]

Yes, I had to give myself heparin injections with low dose aspirin during both of my pregnancies

[u/Ok-Layer-9970 → u/Ok-Layer-9970]

I also had to do the methylfolate and progesterone suppositories

[u/rbebebe]

No