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Fabulous Folic Acid
A Tool to Prevent Birth Defects
By Teri Brown
Lynn Laboranti, a registered dietitian and consumer education specialist for Nature Made Vitamins, says folic acid is absolutely vital for pregnancy. "Folic acid is a key vitamin that the body needs for optimal health," she says. "It is needed for cell division, a healthy nervous system, generating red blood cells, healing wounds and to prevent brain and spinal cord defects for the developing fetus."
Laboranti says poor dietary intake of folic acid can result in growth retardation, anemia, gastrointestinal disorders and neural tube defects.
Folic Acid Deficiency
Diana Normand, a registered dietitian and folic acid program coordinator for the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, says folic acid, when taken prior to conception, can reduce the risk of having a baby with neural tube defects by 50 to 70 percent. Deficiencies in folic acid also can cause certain types of anemia. Mild folic acid deficiency anemia may not produce any symptoms, but as folic acid deficiency progresses, the following common symptoms of anemia may develop: - Weakness
- Fatigue
- Lightheadedness
- Forgetfulness
- Irritability
- Pale appearance (pallor)
- Lack of appetite and weight loss
- Difficulty concentrating or focusing attention
Less common symptoms include:
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal pain
- Sore, smooth tongue
- Cracked lips, especially at the corners of the mouth
- Shortness of breath with exertion
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