Your Health Matters - Investing in your Health

Folic Acid and Pregnancy By Alex Rabrenovich

Women of child-bearing age should be aware of the importance of Folic Acid (also referred to as Folate) in relation to pregnancy. Even if you are not planning to have a child right now, pregnancies can occur unexpectedly. Give your future child the best start by protecting its health.

Why is folic acid important during pregnancy and even more important before pregnancy? Folic acid is a B vitamin that helps in the growth of new cells. A fetus depends on this vitamin as it develops, especially during the fi rst few weeks before most women discover they are pregnant. If a woman has not consumed the recommended levels of folic acid, the fetus may develop spinal cord and brain defects such as spina bifada that cannot be reversed, even if the mother begins proper intake later in the pregnancy. Therefore, if you are a woman who is capable of having children, you should take folic acid regularly in case you become pregnant to protect your baby from irreversible neural tube defects.

The recommended daily intake of folic acid is 400 micrograms. You can take a supplement or multi-vitamin containing folic acid or simply eat more dark green leafy vegetables, enriched and whole-grain breads and fortifi ed cereals. To learn more about the recommended daily vitamin intakes, visit the National Institutes of Health Web site at http://www.health.nih.gov/