Taking A Daily Multivitamin and Eating Fortified Grains Provides Enough Folic Acid to Prevent Brain and Spinal Defects in Newborns

DENVER--To raise awareness about folic acid consumption being key for optimal health, the Colorado Folic Acid Task Force is joining the National Council on Folic Acid in encouraging women of childbearing age to take a daily multivitamin and to eat foods rich in folate to prevent birth defects in their newborns.

Kristi Ladd, a nutrition consultant with the Colorado WIC program (Women, Infants and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program), which is based at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, explained, “Folic acid is a B-vitamin necessary for proper cell growth. Research shows that if adequate amounts of folic acid are consumed before a woman becomes pregnant, up to 70 percent of neural tube defects can be prevented.”

To receive an adequate amount of folic acid, the U.S. Public Health Service recommends that all women of childbearing age consume 400 micrograms of folic acid by taking a multivitamin daily and by eating fortified grains and fresh green leafy vegetables. Fortified grains include foods such as enriched cereals, pasta, rice, bread, dried beans and peas. Peanut butter and orange juice also are good sources of folic acid.

Ladd said, “In particular, women of childbearing age should take folic acid to help prevent birth defects of the brain and spine, such as Spina bifida. Spina bifida is the most common birth defect caused by an inadequate amount of folic acid and is the leading cause of childhood paralysis. Such a defect presents lifelong challenges for affected families.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, the incidence of neural tube defects has decreased by 26 percent since fortification of folic acid in grain products began in 1998.

April Montgomery, chair of the Colorado Folic Acid Task Force, said, “Considering that half of all pregnancies are unplanned, it is especially important that all women of childbearing age take folic acid daily, even before thinking of becoming pregnant.”

Initiated in 1998, the Colorado Folic Acid Task Force is a partnership created to increase folic acid consumption among women of childbearing age. Task force members include staff from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, the Colorado chapter of the March of Dimes, Colorado State University, the Spina Bifida Association of Colorado and community health centers around the state.

For more information, the public may call (303) 692-2700.