Folic Acid in Pregnancy- How much is too much?

Dear Readers,

Folic acid is one of the routine supplements given to pregnant women at hospitals as part of their routine medications at antenatal clinics. But what if pregnant women take more than the recommended amounts? A new study published in the Journal of Endocrinology explored this question by conducting a rat study.

The animals were given 20 times their recommended daily amount of the vitamin throughout their mating, pregnancy, and lactation(breastfeeding) periods. At the end of the study, the researchers found that the babies of rat moms who received the excessive amount of folic acid developed into adults who were:

• Overweight and insulin resistant
• Deficient in a hormone called adiponectin, which protects against diabetes and obesity
• Exhibiting abnormal feeding behavior

My pack of folic acid

These symptoms were more striking in females than in males. In contrast, mother rats given the recommended amount of folic acid during mating, pregnancy, and lactation had babies that developed into healthy adults.

Although women around the world are urged to take folic acid, little research has been done to determine the safe upper limit. This is especially important since women may take supplements and also eat foods that are fortified with the vitamin, so the combination may boost their levels of folic acid into an unsafe category.

Usually, pregnant women get folic acid from the hospital as part of the antenatal clinic. The most popular brand of Folic Acid in Nigeria  is Dr. Meyers which contains 5mg, more than 10 times more than the WHO recommended amount. See photo.

As there are no studies or data to show what amount is safe, your best bet would be to stick with the WHO guidelines and speak your OB on your next antenatal visit or walk into a pharmacy near you to get the 0.4mg tablets.

Aunty Nurse Cares