BACKGROUND Recent research suggests that maternal folic acid supplementation is associated with a reduced risk of childhood brain tumors (CBT); polymorphisms in folate pathway genes could modify this association or directly influence CBT risk. METHODS Associations between risk of CBT and folate pathway polymorphisms were investigated in a population-based case-control study in Australia (2005...

BACKGROUND Folate status, as reflected by red blood cell (RCF) and plasma folates (PF), is related to health and disease risk. Folate degradation products para-aminobenzoylglutamate (pABG) and para-acetamidobenzoylglutamate (apABG) in 24 hour urine have recently been shown to correlate with blood folate. AIM Since blood sampling and collection of 24 hour urine are cumbersome, we investigated ...

Epidemiologic data suggest that increasing folate intake may protect against colorectal cancer. Riboflavin may interact with folate to modulate the effect. A double-blind randomized placebo-controlled intervention study (the FAB2 Study) was carried out in healthy controls and patients with colorectal polyps (adenomatous and hyperplastic) to examine effects of folic acid and riboflavin supplemen...

OBJECTIVE Many health professional groups recommend folic acid supplementation for all women able to become pregnant. In this study, we document folic acid supplement use among a sample of women receiving routine gynecologic care. METHODS A short questionnaire was administered to 322 women aged 18-45 years who were seeking routine gynecologic care at participating clinics in Little Rock, Arka...

INTRODUCTION There are many ideas concerning the etiology and pathogenesis of preeclampsia including endothelial dysfunction, inflammation and angiogenesis. Elevated levels of total homocysteine (Hcy) and lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] are risk factors for endothelial dysfunction. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of high dose folic acid (FA) on serum Hcy and Lp(a) concentrations with respect to...

BACKGROUND Folic acid supplementation is effective in reducing the risk of neural tube defects (NTDs). However, the use of folic acid is low among rural women in China. Nutrition education can provide information about folic acid and encourage its use. The primary objective of this study was to test the effectiveness of a village-based nutrition intervention on folic acid use among rural women....

CONTEXT Iron and zinc are important for the development of both intellectual and motor skills. Few studies have examined whether iron and zinc supplementation during gestation, a critical period of central nervous system development, affects children's later functioning. OBJECTIVE To examine intellectual and motor functioning of children whose mothers received micronutrient supplementation du...

BACKGROUND In Mali, an estimated 73% of pregnant women are anaemic largely due to iron deficiency. National policy recommends women to take iron and folic acid supplements daily from first prenatal contact until 3 months postpartum. However, many pregnant women in Mali could benefit from multiple micronutrient supplements. OBJECTIVE To assess pregnant women's acceptability of and adherence to...

I t is well established that folate requirements increase during pregnancy and that supplementing 0.4 mg folic acid/ day to the general pregnant population is beneficial in terms of reducing the risk of neural tube defects (NTDs). Offspring of women with pregestational diabetes mellitus have an increased risk of congenital anomalies, including NTDs (1). In animal models, folic acid supplementat...

Numerous studies have investigated the effects of folic acid supplementation on colorectal cancer risk, but conflicting results were reported. We herein performed a meta-analysis based on relevant studies to reach a more definitive conclusion. The PubMed and Embase databases were searched for quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published before October 2014. Eight articles met the inclu...