Interesting Findings About Folate
I recently was offered the opportunity to attend a webinar about prenatal care for one of the companies I work for. Since we are considering hopefully expanding our family at some point in the future, and I have many friends of childbearing age, I thought this was fitting for me to learn about.
Any woman who has been pregnant will attest to the fact that doctors and nurses and midwives all tote the power of folic acid. We are told to take a vitamin containing folic acid before conception and all through our pregnancy. Low levels of folic acid can lead to Neural Tube Defects and premature births, among other complications.
This is not new information. What the webinar brought to light is that folic acid is not a naturally occurring substance, and some people cannot break it down and absorb it properly. This means that they cannot convert it to active folate, the important nutrient for growing babies.
This information is somewhat technical, but basically, some people are not able to convert the folic acid into folate efficiently, simply because the folic acid is not active. For these women, even taking all of the folic acid their doctor prescribes cannot prevent neural tube defects and complications, because the folic acid will not be converted into folate and get to the cells.
Researchers have developed a new produced called Metafolin. This nutrient is much more easily broken down into L-methylfolate, the folate in the cells, because it mimics the naturally occurring folates you would get from your food. This L-methylfolate is 7x more bioavailable to the body than traditional folic acid.
NeevoDHA is a new prenatal supplement created for women who are at risk for low folate levels because of anemia, obesity, or impaired folic acid absorption. It also works well for women who have a history of recurring miscarriage, which can be due to poor folic acid absorption.
I found this to be very interesting information, and wondered how long it will take for medical clinics to pick up on this potentially valuable new supplement. The L-methylfolate in Metafolin is a newly produced option that works as an alternative to traditional folic acid. If the data presented in the webinar is true, and I have no reason to think it is not, it seems that this is a very positive improvement for expectant moms or women who plan to become pregnant.
Disclaimer: I was compensated for attending the webinar and posting my opinion on my blog. I was not compensated based on the positive or negative nature of my review. All opinions expressed were completely my own.
Any woman who has been pregnant will attest to the fact that doctors and nurses and midwives all tote the power of folic acid. We are told to take a vitamin containing folic acid before conception and all through our pregnancy. Low levels of folic acid can lead to Neural Tube Defects and premature births, among other complications.
This is not new information. What the webinar brought to light is that folic acid is not a naturally occurring substance, and some people cannot break it down and absorb it properly. This means that they cannot convert it to active folate, the important nutrient for growing babies.
This information is somewhat technical, but basically, some people are not able to convert the folic acid into folate efficiently, simply because the folic acid is not active. For these women, even taking all of the folic acid their doctor prescribes cannot prevent neural tube defects and complications, because the folic acid will not be converted into folate and get to the cells.
Researchers have developed a new produced called Metafolin. This nutrient is much more easily broken down into L-methylfolate, the folate in the cells, because it mimics the naturally occurring folates you would get from your food. This L-methylfolate is 7x more bioavailable to the body than traditional folic acid.
NeevoDHA is a new prenatal supplement created for women who are at risk for low folate levels because of anemia, obesity, or impaired folic acid absorption. It also works well for women who have a history of recurring miscarriage, which can be due to poor folic acid absorption.
I found this to be very interesting information, and wondered how long it will take for medical clinics to pick up on this potentially valuable new supplement. The L-methylfolate in Metafolin is a newly produced option that works as an alternative to traditional folic acid. If the data presented in the webinar is true, and I have no reason to think it is not, it seems that this is a very positive improvement for expectant moms or women who plan to become pregnant.
Disclaimer: I was compensated for attending the webinar and posting my opinion on my blog. I was not compensated based on the positive or negative nature of my review. All opinions expressed were completely my own.
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