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What's the Best Level of Folic Acid in the Food Supply to Prevent Birth Defects? March of Dimes Asks
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., MAY 11, 2000 – The March of Dimes believes that an article in today's New England Journal of Medicine does not go far enough in outlining strategies to protect more mothers and babies from serious birth defects of the brain and spine.
"Now is the time to make a more aggressive effort to prevent more neural tube defects like spina bifida," said Donald R. Mattison, M.D., medical director of the March of Dimes. "First, every state must put into place a birth defects registry to find out what types of birth defects are occurring, how often, and where. At the same time, we must gather more data on the diets of all age and ethnic groups to help us make informed decisions on further fortification of the food supply with folic acid. And we should consider fortifying other foods besides grain products.
"The March of Dimes supports increased funding for more national research and surveillance programs in these areas to help us meet our goal of reducing the incidence of neural tube defects in this country," he said. "Such an increase would be consistent with our government’s Healthy People 2010 goal to raise folic acid levels in women of childbearing age and reduce neural tube defects."
The March of Dimes recommends that every woman capable of having a baby take a daily multivitamin containing 400 micrograms of the B vitamin folic acid as part of a healthy diet. Consumption of folic acid every day beginning before pregnancy may prevent up to 70 percent of the disabling or fatal birth defects known as neural tube defects (NTDs).
Many other health organizations, such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), join the March of Dimes in supporting an increased level of folic acid in the food supply. Presently, the Food and Drug Administration requires that 140 micrograms of folic acid be added to each 100 grams of enriched grain products.
NTDs are among the most serious and common preventable birth defects in the United States. Each year, an estimated 2,500 babies are born with these defects, and many additional affected pregnancies result in miscarriage or stillbirth.
"Fortification of Foods With Folic Acid -- How Much Is Enough?" by James L. Mills, M.D., of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, was published in the May 11, 2000 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, volume 342, number 19, pages 1442-45.
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