In short, our bodies need to go through the process of methylation throughout the day. This is the simplest definition I could find for it:

Methylation is a critical biochemical process that happens billions of times in every single cell of the human body. It’s responsible for a vast range of biological functions such as:

• Detoxification
• DNA expression
• Neurotransmitter production
• Hormone regulation

Whilst it can be complex in nature, the process of methylation simply entails the transfer of four atoms: one carbon atom and three hydrogen atoms. These are transferred from one substance to another. [2]

Often, B vitamins are used or included in this process, especially folate and B12. Aside from this, other genes control things like dopamine (and other neurotransmitters), and how quickly it might be used up in a person's brain. Our genes are very complex, which to me, proves God created, not evolution, but that's another story.

People are born with genes that they inherit from their parents. We normally have sets of two genes and if one is "mutated," it can cause problems. If both are mutated, the problems will be far worse. People can go through their entire lives not understanding their genes create how they think, their natural energy level, whether or not they are a glass half empty or half full, whether they tend toward mental depressive cycles (or worse) and a whole lot more.

A number of years ago, my wife and I went through gene testing (via 23andMe). We were seeing a holistic practitioner at the time and were told this would be beneficial to understand what genetic codes within us we needed to be aware of and often worked against us.

It turns out both my genes for MTHFR are mutated. This gene is responsible for methylation. Because both of my genes are mutated, they simply do not work correctly and problems can and do result from that inefficiency.

Most foods today are not only highly processed, but "enriched," which means artificial vitamins and minerals are added back into the food after it has had much of its natural bounty removed. So when you see the word "enriched," it means things were added back into the food because the vitamins/minerals that were naturally in that food were removed during the processing.

Among the vitamins added back into the food is man-made folic acid. Someone like me, with two mutated MTHFR genes cannot process folic acid. It's impossible. It will simply build up in my system and cause manifold problems like headaches, aches and pains, depressive thoughts, lack of motivation, weakens the immune system, etc. So what do I do? I have to avoid all foods that contain man-made folic acid and eat foods that contain the methylated form of it, folate. So, eating bananas, avocados, raw spinach, etc., all provide folate that my body can actually use.