Intakes of folic acid from dietary supplements and fortified products in students.

BACKGROUND A great variety of dietary supplements and fortified products, containing folic acid, are widely available to satisfy the market demand for supplementing the diet with this vitamin. OBJECTIVE To assess folic acid intake from dietary supplements and fortified products in students. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study was performed between October 2010-April 2011 on 314 university students aged 19-34 years, excluding pregnant or lactating women. Self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information about health, lifestyle and use of dietary supplements during previous month (frequency and doses) and frequency and portion of the fortified products consumed. RESULTS Diets were supplemented by folic acid by almost 13% of respondents; the average intake was 148 +/- 99.7 microg/person/day, (range 10-400 microg). Products fortified with this vitamin were used by 89% students with an average intake of folic acid 83.7 +/- 101 microg/person/day, (range 0.3-660 microg); about a quarter of these subjects were however unaware that they were consuming fortified products. Both product types were used together by 11% students. Among these subjects the average folic acid intake was the highest (233 +/- 151 microg/person/day, range 12.3-678 microg); with 66% originating from supplements and 34% from fortified products. There were no instances of folic acid being consumed above the tolerable upper intake level (UL), of 1000 microg/day. CONCLUSIONS It is necessary to warn the public that overconsumption of folic acid, (through dietary supplements, enriched food), may be hazardous to health, since many people combine such multiple products.