Folic Acid Supplements Not Linked To Multiple Births (p 380)January 29, 2003Results of a Chinese population-based study in this week's issue of THE LANCET provide strong evidence that women who take folic acid supplements during pregnancy do not have an increased likelihood of having a multiple birth. Folic acid supplements are recommended for women of childbearing age to prevent neural tube defects-such as spina bifida and anencephaly-in their children. However, results from some small studies have suggested that consumption of vitamins containing folic acid during pregnancy can lead to an increased chance of having a multiple pregnancy-with associated increased risk of complications and poorer health outcomes of infants. Robert J. Berry from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA, and colleagues from China assessed the incidence of multiple births in around 240,000 Chinese women who used 400 microgram daily folic acid supplements as part of a community health campaign to prevent neural tube defects. The investigators report that women who used supplements before and during early pregnancy did not have an increased likelihood of multiple births compared with women who did not use folic acid supplements-the overall rate in both groups of women was around 0.6%. Robert J Berry comments: "Our findings suggest that consumption of 400 micrograms of folic acid alone per day, before and during early pregnancy, does not increase a woman's likelihood of having a multiple birth, whether taken before the estimated date of ovulation, around the estimated time of fertilisation, or after conception." Lancet |
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| Related Folic Acid Current Events and Folic Acid News Articles Mortality Rates Reduced among Children Whose Mothers Received Iron-folic Acid Supplements Offspring whose mothers had been supplemented with iron-folic acid during pregnancy had dramatically reduced mortality through age 7, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. News brief: Effects of aspirin and folic acid on inflammation markers for colorectal adenomas Unexpectedly, inflammation markers do not appear to be involved with the chemopreventative effect of aspirin on colorectal adenomas, according to a brief communication published online October 12 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Essential nutrient found in eggs may help lower risk of neural tube defects Research published online in the journal Epidemiology found that higher levels of total blood choline are associated with a 2.5-fold reduction in risk for neural tube birth defects (NTDs). Anti-epilepsy drug risk on cognitive function for unborn children Interim results of a study being conducted by scientists at the University of Liverpool suggest that children aged three years and younger, who are born to women taking the anti-epileptic drug sodium valproate whilst pregnant, are likely to have an IQ of six to nine points lower than average. Irish-led research team rule out link between specific antibodies and spina bifida New research, published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, shows that a woman's risk of having a child with a neural tube defect (NTD), such as Spina Bifida, is not linked to folic acid related auto-antibodies. Brain malformations significantly associated with preterm birth, Wake Forest research shows New research out of Wake Forest University School of Medicine provides for the first time a solid scientific answer for the long-standing question of whether there is an association between preterm birth and brain malformations. UCF researcher's nanoparticles could someday lead to end of chemotherapy Nanoparticles specially engineered by University of Central Florida Assistant Professor J. Manuel Perez and his colleagues could someday target and destroy tumors, sparing patients from toxic, whole-body chemotherapies. Some neural tube defects in mice linked to enzyme deficiency Women of childbearing age can reduce the risk of having a child born with a neural tube defect such as spina bifida by eating enough folate or folic acid. However, folate prevents only about 70 percent of these defects. Folic acid to prevent congenital heart defects The Canadian policy of fortifying grain products with folic acid has already proved to be effective in preventing neural tube defects. Taking folic acid for a year before pregnancy may reduce risk of preterm birth Women who take folic acid supplements for at least one year before they become pregnant may cut their risk of having a premature baby by half, according to research published this week in the online journal, PLoS Medicine. More Folic Acid Current Events and Folic Acid News Articles |
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