How to supplement folic acid during pregnancy?

Conceiving a healthy baby is the hope of many families. From constantly strengthening pregnancy preparation knowledge before pregnancy to completing the entire pregnancy period, it can only be described as cautious. Women planning to have a baby should start taking folic acid supplements in the first three months of pregnancy, but there are many questions during this process. Today we will learn about folic acid supplementation.

Importance of folic acid supplementation

1. Prevent neural tube birth defects

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that if women take the recommended daily dose of folic acid at least one month before conception and during the first three months of pregnancy, they can reduce the risk of neural tube defects in their baby by 50% to 70%.

2. Reduce the risk of preeclampsia in expectant mothers

Research suggests that taking a multivitamin that contains folic acid may reduce an expectant mother's risk of preeclampsia. Preeclampsia is a complication unique to pregnancy. Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disease unique to pregnancy that affects 5% to 8% of expectant mothers.

3. Reduce the risk of hyperlipidemia in pregnancy

The Chinese Nutrition Society recommends taking it from 2 to 3 months before pregnancy and continuing until 3 months of pregnancy or throughout the pregnancy. In addition to preventing neural tube defects, it is also beneficial to reduce the risk of gestational hyperlipidemia.

Supplement period:

The best time to take folic acid supplements is from 3 months before you plan to become pregnant to the entire early pregnancy. Folic acid supplementation should continue until the end of pregnancy and should not be interrupted.

During the second and third trimesters of pregnancy, the synthesis of the baby's DNA, the increase in the placenta, maternal tissue and red blood cells all greatly increase your need for folic acid. Therefore, even if the baby's nervous system has been fully developed in the early stages of pregnancy, folic acid deficiency in the middle and late stages of pregnancy can still cause megaloblastic anemia, preeclampsia, and placental abruption.

In addition to taking folic acid tablets, many foods also contain folic acid. However, since folic acid is unstable when exposed to light and heat and easily loses its activity, pregnant mothers should change some cooking habits to minimize the loss of folic acid.

The editor reminds everyone that different people have different needs for folic acid. You must take folic acid tablets suitable for your body dosage under the guidance of a doctor. Folic acid is not something that the more the better. I hope pregnant women pay attention to this point: for any food, the more you use it, the better it is not. The best one is the one that suits you.