1. Download your raw file
From 23andMe (Account → Browse Raw Data → Download) or Ancestry (Settings → DNA → Download Raw Data). You'll get a compressed text file.
Genetic Insights · MTHFR + methylation
Your MTHFR gene,
read on your phone.
Upload your 23andMe or Ancestry raw file. Body Insights interprets MTHFR, COMT, CBS and nine other methylation genes — entirely on your iPhone. No cloud, no account, no data sold. Educational only.
Get Body Insights
Genetic module is premium. Core app is free.
You've heard about the MTHFR gene. Probably from a forum.
Someone in a long-COVID group mentions it. A functional medicine doctor brings it up. A friend with histamine issues swears methylfolate changed her life. Suddenly the word is everywhere and you don't know what to do with it.
So you order a 23andMe kit. You get the ancestry results back. The health reports skip the gene you actually wanted to see. You download the raw file and you're staring at a million rows of text.
Genetic Insights reads that file. It looks at MTHFR — both common variants — plus eleven other genes that show up in the methylation, dopamine, and detoxification conversations. It tells you what each variant you carry has been associated with in research. It does not tell you what to do next. That part is a clinician's job, and we say so loudly.
Your DNA never leaves your phone.
Genetic data is the most sensitive data a person can hand to an app. It's permanent. It implicates your siblings, your children, your parents. Insurers want it. Researchers want it. Marketers want it.
So Body Insights doesn't take it. The raw file you upload is parsed on-device by the iPhone you're holding. The 12 variants we report are stored locally. Nothing is transmitted to our servers. We don't have servers that hold your DNA, because we don't accept your DNA. There is no account to create. There is no “sync to cloud” toggle hidden somewhere. Delete the app and the data is gone with it.
This is the part most genetic-health apps wave a hand at. We're building the feature around it.
The one feature that doesn't read from Apple Health.
Everything else in Body Insights reads your wearable data through Apple Health. Sleep, recovery, glucose, heart rate — we translate what your Apple Watch and CGM are already recording.
Genetic Insights is different. Your DNA isn't in HealthKit. So the flow is:
2. Upload to Body Insights
Open the Genetic Insights module, tap import, choose the file from Files or iCloud Drive. The app uses Apple's sandboxed file access — we only see the file you hand us, when you hand it to us.
3. On-device interpretation
The parser filters down to the 12 target SNPs, matches your genotypes against the published risk variants, and generates a personalised summary. Takes seconds. Stays on the device.
4. Bring it to your clinician
Export or screenshot the result and walk it into the room with the person who actually knows your full picture. We give you the conversation starter, not the protocol.
Read your DNA, on your phone
Genetic Insights is premium. Core app features are free.
For people who want the science (and the limits).
We won't pretend the methylation literature is settled. It isn't. Here's what we read, what it's been associated with, and where the evidence gets shaky.
What the panel covers.
Twelve genes across methylation, dopamine, and detoxification — the variants that show up most often in research on energy, mood, and how the body processes nutrients and stress hormones.
MTHFR (C677T, A1298C)
The most studied variants in the panel. C677T can reduce folate-cycle enzyme activity; A1298C touches the BH4 cycle. Discussed in homocysteine and folate-metabolism research.
COMT (Val158Met)
The “warrior versus worrier” gene. Affects how quickly the body clears catecholamines like dopamine. The literature is fascinating; the real-world effect is subtle.
MAOA, MTR, MTRR, BHMT
Monoamine and methionine-cycle genes. Often discussed together because methylation is a relay, not a single step.
CBS, GSTP1
Sulfur metabolism and glutathione conjugation. Variants here come up in the detoxification literature and in sulfur-sensitivity discussions.
VDR (FokI)
Vitamin D receptor variant linked to differences in how the body responds to vitamin D status.
BDNF, DRD2
Neuroplasticity and dopamine-receptor genes. Often referenced in research on learning, mood, and stress recovery.
The methylation literature is unsettled. We say so.
Here is the honest version. MTHFR C677T is real, common, and has measurable effects on enzyme activity in vitro. Whether it meaningfully affects your day-to-day health is debated. Major medical organisations — ACMG, ACOG — recommend against routine MTHFR testing for most conditions because the clinical actions are limited.
At the same time, plenty of people report that paying attention to methylation cofactors changed how they feel. The published evidence is mixed. Functional medicine and conventional medicine often disagree about how to interpret the same data.
What we will not do is pretend this is settled. The report you get from Body Insights is a translation of what your raw file says and what the literature has associated those variants with. It is not a diagnosis. It is not a treatment plan. It is information — for you and the clinician who knows you.
About the supplement suggestions.
If the app surfaces a variant that's been associated with reduced enzyme activity or altered cofactor demand, you'll see a list of the supplements that come up in research on that variant — methylfolate for MTHFR, magnesium for COMT, molybdenum for CBS, and so on.
This is educational. It is not a recommendation. Folate supplementation in particular interacts with B12 status, with cancer-screening questions, and with medications. Sulfur compounds can make people with CBS variants feel worse if dosed wrong. Vitamin D needs lab-confirmed levels, not guesswork.
Talk to a clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any supplement. If you don't have one who's comfortable with nutrigenetics, that's worth saying out loud — functional medicine practitioners, integrative MDs, and some naturopathic doctors work in this space.
Body Insights vs other DNA-interpretation services.
There are a handful of services that take your raw 23andMe file. They mostly look the same on the surface. Here's where they differ where it matters.
| Web-upload services | 23andMe Health+ | Body Insights | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where your file goes | Their servers | 23andMe servers | On-device only |
| MTHFR (both variants) | Usually | Partial | Yes |
| COMT, CBS, MAOA, etc. | Varies | Limited | Yes |
| Account required | Yes | Yes | No |
| Educational framing | Often prescriptive | Cautious | Explicit — talk to clinician |
| Integration with wearables | No | No | Sleep, recovery, glucose in same app |
Web-upload services are convenient. They also keep your DNA on a server you can't see and can't audit. If that trade is one you don't want to make, the on-device read is here for you.
Questions you're probably asking.
What is the MTHFR gene, in plain English?
An enzyme that helps the body process folate and clear homocysteine. Two common variants — C677T and A1298C — can lower its activity. Many people carry one or both. Whether it matters clinically for you is a doctor conversation.
Will this tell me what supplements to take?
No. It will tell you what supplements come up in research on the variants you carry. That is not the same as a recommendation. Talk to a clinician before changing anything.
Does my raw file get uploaded anywhere?
No. Parsing happens on your iPhone. No transmission to our servers. No account. Delete the app and the data is gone.
Can I use a 23andMe V5 chip file?
Standard 23andMe and Ancestry raw exports work today. The newest 23andMe chip versions are on the roadmap — check back if your file isn't parsing.
I have ME/CFS / long COVID / chronic Lyme. Does this matter for me?
Methylation comes up often in chronic-illness communities. The honest answer is: maybe. The evidence base is thinner than the certainty in the forums. Bring the result to a clinician who knows your case.
How much does it cost?
Genetic Insights is part of the premium tier. The rest of Body Insights — sleep, recovery, glucose — is free for core features.
Privacy, restated.
Genetic data is permanent and shared with relatives. We treat it that way.
- On-device parsing — raw file never transmitted
- No account, no login, no cloud sync
- No third-party sharing, no data sold
- Delete the app and the result deletes with it
- Sandboxed file access via Apple's standard APIs
Read your MTHFR gene, tonight.
Upload from 23andMe or Ancestry. Parsed on-device in seconds. Educational only — bring it to your clinician.