Folic Acid is Good for a Babies Heart

A new study by researchers at McGill University, Montreal, Canada has found that an increase in folic acid intake was followed by a decrease in number of babies born with congenital heart defects.

Lead researcher, Raluca Ionescu-Ittu, began the investigation to discover "whether the 1998 Canadian government policy for mandatory folic acid fortification of flour and pasta products." would in fact reduce in the number of babies born with severe congenital heart defects.

The McGill University research team looked at data from the Quebec administrative databases regarding babies born with severe congenital heart defects between 1990 and 2005. The babies were divided into two groups: Babies born before mandatory folic acid fortification and babies born after mandatory folic acid fortification.

The scientist were looking for a trend in annual prevalence of babies(live and stillbirths) born with severe congenital heart defects in Quebec.

According to the McGill University study, during the nine years before Canada implemented mandatory folic acid fortification of flour and pasta products the, approximately 0.1% of babies were born with severe congenital heart defects. However, during the seven years following Canada's implementation of mandatory folic acid fortification of flour and pasta products, there has been a "significant 6% decrease per year."

The findings of the researchers at McGill University "support the hypothesis that folic acid has a preventive effect on heart defects."

"Our study offers new evidence regarding the benefits of the mandatory [folic acid] fortification policy, which is important both for the countries that are currently considering starting such a policy and for the countries that have already implemented it and are currently monitoring and evaluating its implementation," said Raluca Ionescu-Ittu, in a recent interview with Medline Plus.

In 1996 the United States, the Food and Drug Administration also implemented a mandatory folic acid fortification policy requiring folic acid to be added to enriched breads, cereals, flours, corn meals, pastas, rice and other grain products.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that by 2004, the number of babies born with spina bifida or anencephaly had dropped 26 percent.

In order to reduce the risk of major birth defects, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends "women take 400 mcg [micrograms] of folic acid every day, starting at least three months before getting pregnant." Women who are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant can get their daily value of folic acid either by taking a multivitamin supplement or eating a bowl of breakfast cereal that contains 100% of the folic acid daily value.

Facts About Folic Acid, cdc.gov

Prevalence of severe congenital heart disease after folic acid fortification of grain products: time trend analysis in Quebec, Canada, www.bmj.com

Folic Acid Reduces Infant Heart Defects, www.nlm.nih.gov