1 in 4 women in Canada unaware of folic acid’s benefit in pregnancy: study

A new study has found that approximately one in four in women in Canada are unaware of the benefits of taking folic acid before and during pregnancy to prevent some birth defects, and that level of awareness has not improved in more than a decade.

“Often I find patients of mine are taking a whole bunch of different supplements but not taking the most important one,” Dr. Claire Jones, a Mount Sinai Fertility and Associate Professor, University of Toronto.

Dr. Jones co-authored the study with a number of clinicians, and fourth-year medical student, Vrati Mehra.

“We actually recommend people start taking folic acid three months before they get pregnant and then continue it through their pregnancy,” said Mehra.

Lea Damata, who’s 29 weeks pregnant with her first child, sought out a naturopath in advance of her pregnancy, where she learned when she should start taking folic acid. She said there’s room for improvement in public awareness.

“It’s funny because I actually didn’t know that. And I’m someone who works in perinatal care,” said Damata, who is also a physiotherapist specializing in pelvic health.

“What is the requirement, how much, when should we be taking it, what are specific types because there’s so much over the counter. And so I do feel like it can be very confusing.”

Folic Acid, a B9 vitamin, helps the neural tube develop into the brain and spine, without enough, “the babies can sometimes be born with congenital abnormalities. One of the common ones (is) spina bifida,” explained Mehra.

Research in the 1990s showed that folic acid could prevent such conditions. “And so, in the early 2000s, Canada mandated that companies fortify pasta, breads, cereal and other grain foods with folic acid.”

The fortification coincided with ad campaigns that raised awareness levels among Canadian women up to about 75 per cent in 2007. But researchers found that as of 2018, that awareness level hadn’t changed, particularly with certain groups.

“People didn’t have a family doctor or regular health care provider to tell them to take folic acid,” shared Dr. Jones.

“I think to mitigate some of this awareness issue, what we need is active campaigning, on buses on transit, in schools,” added Mehra.

Ontario’s Ministry of Education tells CityNews it recently held consultations to explore more opportunities for students who want to further their education on important life skills, such as understanding good nutrition and raising healthy children.

The researchers say it may also be beneficial to target newcomers.

“I was an immigrant at one point,” shared Mehra. “Anyone who’s coming new to the country gets a package usually by the government, having even a one liner in there or at service Canada having it in multiple languages”

Health Canada says it welcomes additional contributions to health research, adding in a statement:

“The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) promotes the importance of folic acid to reduce the risk of neural tube defects through its health promotion guidance and resources (including web material) for health professionals and the general public.”

“Take a multivitamin with .4 milligrams of folic acid every day.”