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| Pregnancy | Parenting |
Pregnancy and The Importance of Folic AcidWhy Does Your Baby Need Folic Acid?Folic acid is a naturally occurring B vitamin that is necessary for the production and maintenance of new cells. This is especially important during periods of rapid cell division and growth such as infancy and pregnancy. Adequate folate intake during the periconceptional period, the time just before and just after a woman becomes pregnant when the baby's neural tube is developing, is very important. The neural tube is the part of the embryo that developes into the brain and spine. The risk of neural tube defects is significantly reduced when supplemental folic acid is consumed in addition to a healthy diet prior to and during the first month following conception. Women who could become pregnant are advised to eat foods fortified with folic acid or take supplements in addition to eating folate-rich foods to reduce the risk of some serious birth defects. Taking 400 micrograms of synthetic folic acid daily from fortified foods and/or supplements has been suggested. The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for folate equivalents for pregnant women is 600 micrograms. Taking a multivitamin with 400 micrograms of folic acid in it and eating a healthy diet is the best way to ensure you are getting enough folic acid. Most multivitamins have this amount. You also can get folic acid in your diet, but it's hard to get enough every day through food alone. That's why all women of childbearing age are encouraged to take a multivitamin containing folic acid every day as part of a healthy diet. Folic acid has no known toxic level. If you ate a bowl of fully fortified cereal (400 micrograms), took a folic acid supplement (400 micrograms), and ate fortified foods and foods rich in folate, you would not get too much folic acid. Even in very high amounts, folic acid is non-toxic. Still, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that women consume no more than 1,000 micrograms of synthetic folic acid a day. Folic Acid in Foods Folic acid is found is foods like Fortified breakfast cereals such as Total and Product 19, peanuts, orange juice, enriched breads and pasta, romaine lettuce, asparagus, spinach, black beans, and broccoli. Adding these foods to your regular diet is a good start to getting the folic acid you need. Folic Acid and General Health Folic acid is very important for everyone in maintaining health. It has long been known that folic acid plays an important role in the production of normal red blood cells. More recent studies suggest that folic acid may help prevent stroke, colon and breast cancer. |
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