folic acid before pregnancy

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Emeira
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folic acid before pregnancy

Post by Emeira »

Hi,

RRM what is your opinion on taking folic aid supplements before pregnancy? I with my husband are planing a baby and my doctor said to take 400 mcg three month before pregnancy. I did folic acid blood test and results are in a higher range 41.03 nmol/l (12.2 - 45.3 normal range). With wai diet i consume about 450-640mcg folate per day most of it comes from orange juice, yolks. For female 19+ age RDA is 400mcg and 600mcg during pregnancy.
If i am not deficient in folate and I get RDA from diet alone, is it still necessary to take folic acid supplements? I read some information that too much of it even can be harmful, especially synthetic FA, because its not the same as FA from foods.

Did your wife take folic acid supplements before or during pregnancy?
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RRM
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Re: folic acid before pregnancy

Post by RRM »

Yes, my wife took folic acid each time.
Its correct that too much folic acid has adverse effects, but that was from > 5 mg / day. (one study)
About 70% of studies show positive effects.
The other ones are neutral.Gao et al
So, i would recommend low dosage supplement
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RRM
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Re: folic acid before pregnancy

Post by RRM »

Synthetic FA is molecularly identical to natural FA
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Mr. PC
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Re: folic acid before pregnancy

Post by Mr. PC »

Oh, so synthetic Folic Acid and natural Folate are the same? I just read a book by Ben Lynch which was basically about how different they are.
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Re: folic acid before pregnancy

Post by RRM »

When molecules are identical, they are the same. Even when coming from very different sources. Similarly, glucose in refined sugar is the same as glucose in fruits. That doesn't mean that sugar consumption has the same effect as fruit consumption.
Folate is folate.
Taking supplements is very different from consuming foods.
Studies have shown that synthetic folate works.
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Re: folic acid before pregnancy

Post by Kasper »

The synthetic form of vitamin B9, known as folic acid, does not occur in nature. Only folates are found naturally in foods. Folic acid is a man-made version of the vitamin, created for use in supplements and for fortifying foods because it is more stable and has a higher bioavailability than naturally occurring folates.

Folic acid is the oxidized, monoglutamate form of vitamin B9, with a single glutamate residue. It is fully oxidized, which makes it stable and more resistant to changes during food processing and storage. Molecularly, folic acid features a pteridine ring attached to a para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), which is then linked to a glutamate moiety. It lacks the additional glutamate residues found in natural folates and is not in a reduced form.

In contrast, natural folates found in foods are generally in the tetrahydrofolate (THF) form or one of its derivatives, which are chemically reduced and contain one or more additional glutamate residues in a polyglutamate form. These forms include 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), 5-formyltetrahydrofolate (5-FTHF, also known as folinic acid), and others. The presence of multiple glutamate residues increases the affinity of folates for folate-binding proteins in the body, affecting their absorption and utilization.

The body converts folic acid into the active form, known as 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), which is the same form that folates from foods are converted into for the body's use.

The presence of unmetabolized folic acid (UMFA) in the bloodstream has become a significant focus of research within the context of high folic acid intakes from supplements and fortified foods. UMFA refers to folic acid that is absorbed but not converted into the active forms of folate that the body can use. This situation arises when the intake of folic acid exceeds the body's capacity to convert it to its usable forms through the enzymatic action of dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR).

The relationship between folic acid supplementation, UMFA, and cancer risk is complex and has been the subject of considerable research. Some evidence suggests that excessive folic acid intake could stimulate the growth of existing pre-cancerous or cancerous cells, but the evidence is mixed and may depend on timing, dosage, and individual factors.
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