Methylation Stack

The Optimal DNA & Methylation Test is Stride's most comprehensive genetic health analysis. It combines methylation genetics with nutrigenetics, fitness performance, sleep and stress traits, and skin health insights to provide a detailed view of how your body is biologically wired.

Rather than focusing on a single pathway, this test looks across multiple systems to help inform personalised nutrition, supplementation, training, recovery, sleep, and long-term health optimisation.

Methylation is a core biochemical process that supports gene expression, detoxification, energy production, immune function, neurotransmitter balance, hormone metabolism, and lipid regulation.

Genetic variants in methylation-related genes such as MTHFR, MTR, MTRR, COMT, BHMT, and CBS can influence how efficiently your body converts and uses nutrients like folate and vitamin B12.

Understanding your genetic variants allows nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle strategies to be tailored more precisely to support optimal methylation.

Your package includes:

• At-home DNA test kit with prepaid UK lab return
• Five detailed methylation pathway reports
• Twenty-four nutrigenetic reports
• Four genetic fitness reports covering power and endurance, aerobic response, recovery efficiency, and injury predisposition
• Five genetic mental cognition reports covering chronotype, sleep quality, caffeine response, stress tolerance, and cognitive style
• Seven genetic skin reports covering skin ageing, oxidative stress, glycation sensitivity, pigmentation, nickel sensitivity, detoxification, and inflammation
• One-to-one support from qualified health professionals, including dieticians
• Access to the Stride digital health platform

The Optimal test analyses the full methylation foundation, including:

• Folate Cycle
• Methionine Cycle
• Transsulphuration Pathway
• BH4 Cycle
• Urea Cycle

Together, these pathways influence nutrient processing, neurotransmitter balance, detoxification capacity, antioxidant production, and cardiovascular function.

The test includes a comprehensive methylation gene panel used across Stride's Core and Advanced offerings, embedded within a wider analysis of over 9,000 genetic loci.

Key methylation-related genes include MTHFR (C677T and A1298C), MTR, MTRR, COMT, BHMT, CBS, MAOA, MAOB, DHFR, FUT2, NOS3, PEMT, SOD2, TCN2, and VDR.

This broader context allows methylation results to be interpreted alongside related nutrient and metabolic pathways.

Stride focuses on genetic variants that are both clinically relevant and actionable.

Common AHCY variants are either benign or extremely rare, while pathogenic mutations are associated with serious medical conditions and are not appropriate for routine consumer reporting.

Excluding these variants ensures reports remain meaningful, responsible, and focused on practical health optimisation.

The Optimal test includes everything in the Core test and adds genetic insights related to nutrition, fitness performance, recovery, sleep and stress traits, and skin ageing and inflammation.

It is designed for individuals looking for a more complete, longevity-focused view of their health blueprint.

The test provides personalised guidance for nutrition and supplementation, alongside insights to optimise training, recovery, sleep quality, stress resilience, and skin health.

By understanding how your body is genetically wired, you can make more informed decisions rather than relying on generic advice.

All plans include one-to-one consultations with qualified dieticians and health practitioners.

Your practitioner helps interpret your results and translate them into a clear, actionable plan tailored to your goals.

Results are typically delivered within ten business days after your sample reaches Stride's UK laboratory.

Stride ships test kits globally from the UK, including to Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific, Oceania, South America, and Africa.

Delivery times and customs charges vary by location.

If your country is not listed at checkout, please contact hey@getstride.com for guidance.

StrideDNA tests are designed for adults aged 18 and over.

Testing for individuals under 18 should only be arranged by a parent or legal guardian and ideally interpreted with a qualified healthcare professional. Regulations and availability for minors vary by country.

No. This is a genetic methylation test, not an epigenetic age test.

It analyses inherited DNA variants that influence how your methylation pathways function across your lifetime. Epigenetic age testing instead measures methylation marks on DNA that change over time in response to lifestyle, stress, illness, and ageing.

Both approaches are valid, but they answer different questions.

Our top-tier product, StrideOne, includes a separate biological age feature based on nine blood biomarkers. This uses the PhenoAge model to estimate biological age from physiological markers rather than DNA methylation.

Many methylation DNA tests analyse a small number of core genes.

Stride's Optimal DNA & Methylation Test includes a broader, clinically relevant panel that covers the full methylation foundation and related nutrient and metabolic pathways.

This wider coverage allows for more precise insight into nutrient requirements, cofactors, and downstream effects.

Genetic testing explains your biological capacity, while blood testing shows your current nutritional and metabolic status.

Combining DNA results with blood markers such as folate, vitamin B12, homocysteine, and key minerals allows supplement choices and dosing to be tailored more accurately.

If you want to explore the relationship between your DNA and blood biomarkers in more depth, consider our StrideOne or Vital Duo options.