🥦 A Vegan with High Cholesterol? It Happens More Than You Think
For over twenty years, Sarah believed she was doing everything right.
No meat. No dairy. No animal fats. Just plants, whole grains, and clean living.
So when her doctor told her that her cholesterol and blood pressure were dangerously high, she was shocked.
“How could this happen? I’m vegan.”
The answer wasn’t about dietary fat.
It was about homocysteine, a hidden marker that most doctors never check.
Homocysteine on Vegan Diet
A Vegan with High Cholesterol? It Happens More Than You Think
What Is Homocysteine and Why It Matters
Homocysteine is an amino acid your body produces naturally.
Normally, it’s recycled through a process called methylation, which depends on three vital nutrients:
- Vitamin B6 (as P5P)
- Folate (as methyl folate, not folic acid)
- Vitamin B12 (as methylcobalamin)
When these vitamins are lacking as often happens in vegan and vegetarian diets homocysteine builds up in the bloodstream, silently damaging arteries, nerves and brain tissue over time.
The Vegan – Homocysteine Connection
Vegan and plant-based diets are often low in vitamin B12, and sometimes B6 and active folate.
Without these nutrients, methylation slows down and homocysteine levels rise.
High homocysteine can:
- Stiffen arteries and increase blood pressure
- Promote inflammation and oxidative stress
- Trigger abnormal cholesterol metabolism, even without animal fats
- Lead to fatigue, anxiety, infertility, or brain fog
So while a vegan diet can be incredibly healthy, unbalanced methylation can quietly raise cardiovascular risk.
The MTHFR Gene Factor
Up to 50% of people carry an MTHFR gene variant that affects how their body activates folate and vitamin B12.
If you’re vegan and have this genetic variant, your body may struggle to recycle homocysteine efficiently, causing elevated levels, even with a perfect diet.
How Testing Can Change Everything
A homocysteine blood test is simple, inexpensive, and available through your GP or private labs.
Optimal range:
- Below 10 µmol/L – Excellent
- 10–15 µmol/L – Needs improvement
- 15+ µmol/L – Time to act
When Sarah finally tested her homocysteine, it came back 16 µmol/L.
After supplementing with methylated B6, folate, and B12, her level dropped to 8 µmol/L and within two months, her blood pressure and cholesterol began to normalise naturally.
Lowering Homocysteine Naturally
To support methylation and protect your heart and brain:
- Eat leafy greens, asparagus, broccoli, avocado and lentils.
- Manage stress and sleep well.
- Reduce alcohol and processed carbs.
Use an active B-complex that includes methylated forms , NOT folic acid.
Support Your Methylation with NeuroThrive
At NeuroThrive.ie, we created a science-based formula specifically for this:
B6 (P5P) + Methyl Folate + Methyl B12 in their most bioactive forms.
It’s designed to:
- Support homocysteine metabolism
- Improve energy, mood, and focus
- Protect the heart, brain, and nervous system
Because even with the cleanest diet, your body still needs the right tools to function properly.
Learn more and shop our NeuroThrive MTHFR Support formula here.
Key Takeaway
Vegan diets can be incredibly healing but without active B vitamins, the methylation pathway can stall, raising homocysteine and silently increasing cardiovascular risk.
Don’t just look at cholesterol. Check your homocysteine.
Awareness is prevention.
#MethylationMatters #CognitiveDecline #B12Deficiency #FolateFix #MTHFR #AlzheimersAwareness #BrainHealth #NeuroHealing #Homocysteine #FixableDementia #BioScribedScience #NeuroThriveSupport #FunctionalMedicine #MemoryLossReversal
🔬 Still Vegan, Still Vulnerable?
Even plant powered diets aren’t immune to hidden imbalances. High cholesterol and blood pressure might not be about fat or salt, they could be homocysteine red flags.
✅ Learn how methylation, B vitamins, and the MTHFR gene play a silent but deadly role in your heart and brain health.
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