Folic Acid
Folic Acid is a B vitamin, specifically B9. It is an essential nutrient required by the body to create healthy new cells. While we hear about it mostly in regards to pregnancy, it is important to understand that the need for folic acid goes even beyond this. Folic acid is essential for the body to create red blood cells which in turn prevents anemia. It is also plays an important role in the metabolism of homocysteine, an amino acid.
The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for all men and women 14 and older is 400 mcg. Men often don’t realize this as the benefits to pregnant women are more publicized, but any human being is in need of proper amounts of folic acid to insure the body is able to create new red blood cells to nourish the body with oxygen. The recommendation is to either get this amount by using a dietary supplement or eating foods fortified with folic acid. Folic acid is the synthetic version of folate and appears to be absorbed by the body (also known as bioavailable) much better than the folate occurring naturally in food. One mcg of food folate (also called 1 DFE - Dietary Folate Equivalent) is equal to 0.6 mcg of synthetic folic acid. This means that to meet the RDA from food alone, a woman or man would have to eat food naturally containing about 667 mcg per day (400/0.6 ) which might prove difficult.
Folic Acid is especially important to pregnant women. Women that have sufficient Folic Acid in their diet before and after they conceive, have a 50-70% less chance of having a baby with a brain or spine defect such as spina bifida or anencephaly .(1) Because of this the recommended dietary allowance for pregnant women is higher than for a woman that is not pregnant. The RDA for pregnant women is 600 mcg as opposed to 400 mcg. Any woman of childbearing age should be taking between 400 mcg - 600 mcg per day as about half of all pregnancies are unplanned. If a woman does not start supplementation until she is pregnant she has already lost
The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for all men and women 14 and older is 400 mcg. Men often don’t realize this as the benefits to pregnant women are more publicized, but any human being is in need of proper amounts of folic acid to insure the body is able to create new red blood cells to nourish the body with oxygen. The recommendation is to either get this amount by using a dietary supplement or eating foods fortified with folic acid. Folic acid is the synthetic version of folate and appears to be absorbed by the body (also known as bioavailable) much better than the folate occurring naturally in food. One mcg of food folate (also called 1 DFE - Dietary Folate Equivalent) is equal to 0.6 mcg of synthetic folic acid. This means that to meet the RDA from food alone, a woman or man would have to eat food naturally containing about 667 mcg per day (400/0.6 ) which might prove difficult.
Folic Acid is especially important to pregnant women. Women that have sufficient Folic Acid in their diet before and after they conceive, have a 50-70% less chance of having a baby with a brain or spine defect such as spina bifida or anencephaly .(1) Because of this the recommended dietary allowance for pregnant women is higher than for a woman that is not pregnant. The RDA for pregnant women is 600 mcg as opposed to 400 mcg. Any woman of childbearing age should be taking between 400 mcg - 600 mcg per day as about half of all pregnancies are unplanned. If a woman does not start supplementation until she is pregnant she has already lost