Houghton, L. A., Yang, J., and O'Connor, D. L. Unmetabolized folic acid and total folate concentrations in breast milk are unaffected by low -
dose folate supplements.
She stated that though the best solution to Anaemia in adolescent girls, according to experts, is to give them nutrient - rich food with additional meat, liver, chicken, egg or fish, it is also important to supplement that by providing them with
iron folate supplements routinely for immediate health and developmental benefits.
Women should consume daily iron and
folate supplements when they are pregnant and for at least three months after childbirth and should receive other micronutrients as needed.
[114] Particular attention has been given to use
of folate supplements by young women to reduce the risk of fetal neural tube defects.
If you eat green leafy vegetables on a regular basis you don't actually
need folate supplements but you you avoid consuming them regularly instead of folic acid take folate in its active form of 5 methyltetrahydrofolate.
This amount should include the amount in multivitamins and any
additional folate supplement (be sure to check multivitamins, as many contain the synthetic form!).
To do this, says the NHMRC, you need an additional 400 mg per day from folate - fortified foods or
folate supplements.
If you're planning pregnancy, she recommends taking
a folate supplement as soon as you stop using contraception, or at least a month before you become pregnant.
After all,
folate supplements have reduced the incidence of neural tube defects in pregnancy significantly.
Would you recommend taking
a folate supplement in addition to this for those trying to conceive?
A 2013 study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found subjects who took vitamin B - 12 and
folate supplements had significantly lower incidences of age - related macular degeneration (AMD) ten years later.
Higher intake of beta carotene supplements, fiber, fish,
folate supplements, fruits and vegetables, and polyunsaturated fatty acids relative to saturated fatty acids, total fat, and ascorbic acid and vitamin E supplements were not significantly associated with CHD.