Folic acid is an essential nutrient that’s used to create the cells needed in the growth and development of a healthy baby. If a pregnant woman’s diet is inadequate in this B vitamin, devastating birth defects can occur in the baby.
Women need to consume adequate amounts of folic acid prior to conception as well as during the first two to three months of pregnancy, when these cells are working overtime to form a baby. A deficiency of folic acid during this critical time period can increase the risk of neural tube defects, such as anencephaly and spina bifida. In anencephaly, the brain doesn’t completely form, so the baby is born not being able to move, hear, think or function, and death will likely occur soon after birth. Babies born with spina bifida have a backbone and spinal cord that aren’t properly developed, which causes physical disabilities, such as the inability to walk.
[See: The Fertility Preservation Diet: How to Eat if You Want to Get Pregnant.]
The problem is, 50 percent of the pregnancies in the United States are unplanned. No, that’s not a typo. By the time a woman finds out that she is pregnant, the window of opportunity to consume enough folic acid to prevent these birth defects has passed. Because of this eye-opening pregnancy statistic, the U.S. Public Health Service recommended in 1992 that all women of childbearing age who are capable of becoming pregnant consume 400 micrograms of folic acid daily to help prevent these birth defects. Leafy green veggies, citrus fruits and beans are good sources of this B vitamin.
To further help women reach this targeted amount of folic acid in their diets, the Food and Drug Administration established food manufacturing guidelines in 1998 that enriched all refined cereal and grain products, such as bread, pasta and corn grits with folic acid to automatically boost a woman’s consumption of this vitamin.
[See: How to Cope With Gestational Diabetes.]
In spite of all of these efforts, recent research suggests that many women are still falling short of the daily recommendation for folic acid. The popularity of fad, low-carbohydrate and gluten-free diets could be causing women to eliminate grains, an excellent source of folic acid, in their diets. The other push to eat more whole grains, which are not automatically enriched with folic acid, rather than enriched grains, which automatically have folic acid added, could also be feeding into this diet shortfall among many women.
The solution? A USPHS task force is now proposing that all women planning to get pregnant or capable of becoming pregnant take a daily supplement containing 400 to 800 micrograms of folic acid. (Note: Women who have a personal or family history of neural tube defects, should consult with their health care providers regarding the appropriate dose of folic acid that should be consumed during this critical period.) The task force is currently accepting public comments on this issue before publishing a final public announcement.
[See: The Best and Worst Exercises for Pregnant Women.]
Here’s the good news: A folic acid supplement containing 400 micrograms can be purchased for as little as $0.02 a pill. While we await the final USPHS recommendation, all women should consult with their health care providers about this issue. If you want my 2 cents, I think taking this supplement makes perfect sense to help protect future pregnancies.
More from U.S. News
In Vitro Fertilization Grows Up
10 Concerns Parents Have About Their Kids’ Health
10 Things No One Tells You About Breast-feeding
Should You Be Taking a Folic Acid Supplement? originally appeared on usnews.com
