26 May 2008
Folic Acid or Folate in Pregnancy to reduce the risk of neural tube defects
Posted by Butterfly under: Folate; Pregnancy .
Once a woman becomes pregnant (within the industrialised nations of the world), they typically go in and see their family doctor or obstetrician to begin their prenatal care. During the first visit, the doctor or nurse practitioner will prescribe what has become known as prenatal vitamins which are taken to boost nutritional intake. They are usually a multiple vitamin with extra folic acid.
While some physicians still don’t agree on the use of nutritional supplements over all, pregnancy is one time in a woman’s life that doctors agree they need supplementation. More and more doctors are realising that women who are trying to get pregnant need to be taking supplements-especially folic acid.
Women who are taking at least 400 to 800 mcg of folic acid prior to becoming pregnant substantially decrease the risk of their child having a neural tube defect (spina bifida or hydrocephalus). This protection does not occur when supplements are begun two to three weeks after a woman discovers she is pregnant. Therefore, if there is even a slight possibility of becoming pregnant, a woman should be taking nutritional supplements.
Please note that the claim about folate cannot imply that adequate folate intake alone will ensure a healthy baby, since so many factors can affect a pregnancy and women should bear this in mind when contemplating pregnancy, advises Jeanne Latham, a registered dietitian and consumer safety officer in FDA’s Office of Special Nutritionals. “Folate can make a significant contribution,” she said, “many factors, including an overall good diet, are involved in having a healthy baby.”
Article source: July 1996 FDA Consumer revised February 1999
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