NAMA highlights the benefits of folic acid

The North American Millers' Association (NAMA) has issued a public service announcement about the benefits of bread and pasta for women of childbearing age.

The public announcement was made to coincide with a nationwide campaign running throughout January and backed up the findings of a recent report showing that the benefits of fortifying grain products with folic acid are even greater than expected.

Researchers at Tufts University investigated the effects of folic acid fortification in adults. Their results show that the introduction of folic acid in common foods significantly improved folate levels by more than expected in most middle aged and elderly Americans, regardless of whether they took additional vitamin supplements or not.

Signs of folic acid deficiency may include headaches, forgetfulness, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, weight loss, weakness, sore tongue, heart palpitations, and irritability.

Since January 1998, all enriched flour, rice, pasta, cornmeal and other cereal grain products in the United States have been fortified with folic acid to help reduce the incidence of neural tube defects (NTDs) in infants.

These foods were chosen for fortification with folic acid because they are staple products for most of the U.S. population, and because they have a long history of being successful vehicles for improving nutrition to reduce the risk of nutrient deficiency diseases.

NTDs can occur in an embryo before a woman may realise she is pregnant, and so the FDA has taken steps to fortify food so that all women of childbearing age get a daily dose of folic acid.

Without it, most women 19 to 50 get only 0.2 mg of folic acid each day, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates, compared to the recommended 0.4mg.