Discuss the importance of folic acid supplementation
before conception and during the first trimester of
pregnancy?
Introduction
Folic acid is a B vitamin. Our bodies use it to make new cells.
Think about the skin, hair, and nails. These – and other components
of the body – make new cells every day. Folic acid is the
artificial (that is, no longer commonly happening naturally) form
of folate that is used in supplements and in fortified ingredients
such as rice, pasta, bread, and some breakfast cereals.
Why folic acid is important before and during
pregnancy?
- During early development, folic acid helps structure the neural
tube. Folic acid is very vital because it can help prevent some
most important birth defects of the baby’s talent (anencephaly) and
backbone (spina bifida).
- Women of reproductive age need four hundred mcg of folic acid
every day
- All women of reproductive age get four hundred mcg of folic
acid each day to get enough folic acid to help prevent some birth
defects because
- About half of of U.S. pregnancies are unplanned, and
- Major birth defects of the baby’s talent or spine manifest very
early in being pregnant (3-4 weeks after conception), earlier than
most girls comprehend they are pregnant.
- When taking folic acid, a greater dose than 400 mcg of folic
acid every day is no longer necessarily higher to forestall neural
tube defects, unless a doctor recommends taking extra due to other
fitness conditions.
- When planning to end up pregnant, women who have already had a
being pregnant affected by means of a neural tube defect have to
seek advice from with their healthcare provider. CDC recommends
that these female consume 4,000 mcg of folic acid each day one
month before becoming pregnant and through the first three months
of pregnancy.