Folic acid, also called pteroylglutamic acid, folate, or folacin, water-soluble vitamin of the B complex that is essential in animals and plants for the synthesis of nucleic acids. Folic acid was isolated from liver cells in 1943.

The article presents information on benefits of taking vitamin B to prevent crippling birth defects. Consumption of the vitamin B is linked to reduction in neural-tube defects (NTDs) including spina bifida and anencephaly, as found by the British researcher Nicholas Wald in 1991. In 1998, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved fortification of cereals. To get the maximum benefits, the folate supplements should be started before conceiving.

Birth defects of the central nervous system, such as spina bifida, have dropped 40 per cent since 1995 in Victoria, largely due to pregnant women consuming more of the vitamin folate, a State Government report has found.

Our daily bread will get a health booster from tomorrow -- the start date for a national program to cut spina bifida rates by adding folic acid to wheat flour.
But it will do so despite commissioned advice from a senior public health expert that targeted education campaigns could have achieved more at lower cost than the new mandatory program.

Australia's rate of women with low folate levels, putting an unborn baby at risk of disability, has plummeted following the move to dose the bread supply.

Taking folic acid while pregnant may protect the baby in more ways than previously known. Two studies in the last month suggest this broader benefit, the Associated Press reported June 1. Folic acid taken in early pregnancy can help prevent birth defects of the spine and brain. Now researchers say it may help prevent other problems.

Spina bifida results from failure of fusion of the caudal neural tube, and is one of the most common malformations of human structure. The causes of this disorder are heterogeneous and include chromosome abnormalities, single gene disorders, and teratogenic exposures. However, the cause is not known in most cases. Up to 70% of spina bifida cases can be prevented by maternal, periconceptional folic acid supplementation.

Ting's supervisor, Dr Stephen Jane, said although the incidence of spina bifida has decreased due to use of folate supplements by women in early pregnancy, this did not seem to work with some children.

There is no single known cause for SB. It is due to a complex interaction of both genetic and environmental factors occurring very early in the pregnancy (by the 4th week). The genetic factors that can cause SB are not well known. Research has shown that supplementation of folic acid ( a “B” vitamin) reduces the risk of having a pregnancy affected by SB. However, many people who take folic acid still have babies with SB, and women who did not take folic acid still have healthy babies. No one knows why. It just happens. This means that there is still much to learn about the causes of SB, and it is nobody’s fault.

The American Academy of Pediatrics endorses the US Public Health Service (USPHS) recommendation that all women capable of becoming pregnant consume 400 μg of folic acid daily to prevent neural tube defects (NTDs). Studies have demonstrated that periconceptional folic acid supplementation can prevent 50% or more of NTDs such as spina bifida and anencephaly.

Pre-conceptional supplementation of folic acid is well known to reduce the incidence of spina bifida. But Athena is frequently perplexed to see this anomaly occurring despite folate supplementation. In a largest Canadian study, De Wal et al [1] screened 1.9 million live births to study the effect of mass fortification. On comparing pre and post fortification periods they noted only 46% reduction in the incidence of neural tube defects (NTD). What happens to the remaining 54%? Why do they defy “folic acid” logics? Recently several publications have shed more light on this intriguing question.

Randomised controlled trials published in 1991 and 1992 from the United Kingdom1 and Hungary2 provided firm evidence that increased intake of folic acid in the periconceptional period — usually regarded as the month before pregnancy and the first 3 months of pregnancy — reduces the risk of having a baby with a neural tube defect (NTD) by about 72%.

Results from scientific studies suggest increased folic acid consumption reduces the risk for having a pregnancy affected by neural tube defects.