Intake of folic acid supplements in late pregnancy could cause asthma in kids
November 4th, 2009 - 1:13 pm ICT by ANI ( Leave a comment )Washington, Nov 4 (ANI): Folic acid supplements taken by mothers in late pregnancy could lead to allergic asthma in their children at the age of 3 to 5 years, according to a study.
The study by University of Adelaide’s Robinson Institute suggests that the timing of supplementation in pregnancy is important.
Associate Professor Michael Davies has said that folic acid supplements - recommended for pregnant women to prevent birth defects - appear to have “additional and unexpected” consequences in recent studies in mice and infants.
“In our study, supplemental folic acid in late pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of asthma in children, but there was no evidence to suggest any adverse effects if supplements were taken in early pregnancy,” he said.
The study involved more than 500 women whose maternal diet and supplements were assessed twice during their pregnancy, with follow-up on their child’s asthma status at 3.5 years and 5.5 years.
Asthma was reported in 11.6 pct of children at 3.5 years and 11.8 pct of children at 5.5 years. Nearly a third of these children reported persistent asthma.
Current public health guidelines recommend that women consume a supplemental dose of 400 micrograms of folic acid per day in the month preceding and during the first trimester of pregnancy to reduce the risk of neural tube defects in children.
“Our study supports these guidelines, as we found no increased risk of asthma if folic acid supplements were taken in pre or early pregnancy. However, these guidelines may need to be expanded to include recommendations about avoiding use of high dose supplemental folic acid in late pregnancy,” said Davies.
He said that their study found no evidence to link asthma with dietary folate, which is found in green, leafy vegetables, certain fruits and nuts.
Nearly half of all mothers in the study took a folic acid supplement pre-pregnancy and 56 percent met the required daily dosage of 400 micrograms in early pregnancy.
“These findings show there is a potentially important critical period during which folic acid supplement dosages may be manipulated to optimise their neuro-protective effects while not increasing the risk of asthma,” said Davies.
The findings of the study have been published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. (ANI)
- Supplements can raise asthma risk - Nov 05, 2009
- High intakes of folic acid may be linked to cancer - Dec 14, 2010
- Folate could prevent alcohol-induced congenital heart defects in mice - May 25, 2010
- Folic acid protects offsprings from colon cancer - May 27, 2011
- Mums who take folic acid, iron during pregnancy have smarter kids - Dec 22, 2010
- Meta-analysis shows folic acid supplements not beneficial for heart - Oct 12, 2010
- Folic acid supplements contribute to breast cancer risk: Study - Feb 12, 2011
- Some coffee, cola ok during pregnancy - Jan 21, 2010
- Vitamin B9 good for treating allergies, asthma - May 02, 2009
- Severely obese women need to watch weight during pregnancy - Feb 12, 2011
- Lifestyle intervention helps women cut pregnancy flab - Mar 01, 2011
- Excess weight in pregnancy gateway to heart risks in child - Jun 04, 2010
- Drugs that block folic acid in pregnancy double birth defects risk - Oct 14, 2009
- Immigrant mums 'at higher risk of having babies with birth defects' - Apr 17, 2009
- Lifestyle could be hurdle to fertility: study - Jul 06, 2009
Tags: allergic asthma, associate professor michael, dietary folate, early pregnancy, first trimester of pregnancy, folic acid supplement, folic acid supplements, green leafy vegetables, late pregnancy, maternal diet, michael davies, neural tube defects, persistent asthma, pre pregnancy, public health guidelines, supplemental dose, supplemental folic acid, trimester of pregnancy, unexpected consequences, university of adelaide
