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Folic acid and birth defect prevention

Contents of this page:

Illustrations

First trimester of pregnancy
First trimester of pregnancy
Folic acid
Folic acid
Early weeks of pregnancy
Early weeks of pregnancy

Alternative Names    Return to top

Prevention of birth defects with folic acid (folate)

Information    Return to top

Question:

Does folic acid use help prevent birth defects?

Answer:

There is good evidence that you can reduce the risk of certain birth defects (spina bifida and anencephaly) by taking a daily dose of 400 micrograms folic acid from 1 month before conception through the first trimester of pregnancy. Therefore, if you would like to become pregnant in the near future, you should take a multivitamin with this amount of folic acid.

Women who have had a baby with a neural tube defect will need a higher dose of folic acid. If you have had a baby with a neural tube defect, you should take 400 micrograms of folic acid every day, even when you are not planning to become pregnant. If you plan to become pregnant, you should talk to your doctor and increase your folic acid intake to 4 milligrams each day during the month before you become pregnant until at least the 12th week of pregnancy.

Update Date: 11/9/2007

Updated by: Peter Chen, M.D., Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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