Folic acid and its Health benefits

Overview

What is folic acid?

Folic acid is a synthetic (artificial) folate vitamin. Folate is the water-soluble B9 vitamin found naturally in some animal and plant foods. Folate helps the body make new red blood cells, helps utilize fat and protein, and helps the nervous system proper functioning.¹Overview | Researched based study from Nih.gov

Facts

Facts about folic acid

• To create new skin, hair, and nail cells, folic acid is used by our bodies.
• One can get folic acid through dietary supplements and fortified (enriched with nutrients) foods.
• In fortified meals and supplements, folate is found in the synthetic form of folic acid, which has a higher bioavailability than naturally occurring folate.
• Folic acid and vitamin B12 support the body’s efficient utilization of iron.
• It is rare to have a folate shortage on its own; instead, it typically coexists with other dietary deficiencies.
• Folic acid is sometimes used with other drugs to treat pernicious anemia (the body’s red blood cells decrease due to the inability of the intestine to absorb vitamin B12) ¹Facts| Researched based study from Nih.gov .

Sources

Sources of folic acid

Folic acid is only available in tablet form or as a supplement, but we can get folate naturally from the following food sources.

Plant sources

• Dark leafy vegetables
• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Kale
• Spinach
• Beets
• Turnips
• Whole grains
• Beans
• Brussels sprouts
• Avocado
• Orange
• Papaya
• Banana

Animal sources

• Salmon
• Beef liver
• Milk
• Egg
• Brewer’s yeast ²Sources| Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Functions

Functions of folic acid

The body uses folate

• To produce and maintain deoxyribonucleic acid
• To help mature the red blood cells
• To help create new proteins
• To help the body cells work ¹Role | Researched based study from Nih.gov

Benefits

Health benefits of folic acid

Treat folate deficiency

• Consuming folic acid raises the folate level in our body. it prevents the complication of folate deficiency, such as anemia, pregnancy issues, etc ³Benefits | Researched based study from Cdc.gov

Helpful in pregnancy

• It helps in the development of the fetal brain and spine (neural tube) and prevents neural tube defects
• It decreases pregnancy-related complications such as preeclampsia ( high blood pressure) ⁴Benefits | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Maintain brain health

• It helps in brain functioning .
• It improves the thinking ability .
• It reduces the risk of dementia (memory loss)⁵Benefits | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Reduces blood pressure

• Folic acid intake relaxes the blood vessels and improves blood flow ¹²Benefits | Researched based study from Nature.com

Treats vitiligo (skin disorder)

• Vitiligo is when the skin loses its color and develops milky-white patches.
• Folic acid intake improves the symptoms of vitiligo ¹³Benefits| Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Treats depression

• Folate helps in the production of neurotransmitters (chemical messengers that carry the signal from one neuron to another)
• It decreases the symptoms of depression in new moms(postpartum depression) ⁶Benefits| Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Prevent the risk of heart disease

• High homocysteine (amino acid)increases the risk of heart diseases
• Folate helps in the breakdown of homocysteine and thus help lowers its level in the blood ⁷Benefits | Researched based study from Ahajournals.org

Prevent fertility problem

Taking Folic acid

• It enhances the egg(ovum) quality .
• It increases the chance of egg implantation in the uterus and increases the likelihood of conceiving ⁸Benefits | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Kidney disease

Folic acid intake

• It helps decrease the homocysteine level in the blood of impaired kidney patients also decreases the risk of heart problem ⁹Benefits| Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Inflammation

• Folic acid intake reduces the C-reactive protein level in the blood
• C-reactive protein level increases during inflammation in the body ¹⁰Benefits | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Diabetes (high blood sugar)

Folic acid intake

• It helps maintain the blood sugar in our body
• It decreases the insulin resistance, insulin resistance is when body cells don’t respond to insulin and cannot convert sugar into energy. ¹¹Benefits | Researched based study from Mpdi.com

Dosage

Dosage of folic acid

The recommended dietary allowance for folate for different age groups is as follows

• Age 0 to six months-65 microgram DFE (Dietary folate equivalent)
• Age 7 to 1year-80 microgram DFE
• Age 1 to 3 years-150 micrograms DFE
• Age 4-8 years-200 micrograms DFE
• Age 9-13 years-300 micrograms DFE
• Age 14 years and above 400 micrograms DFE
• Pregnant woman-600 micrograms DFE ¹Dosage | Researched based study from Nih.gov

Toxicity

Risk of folic acid overdose toxicity

Taking high doses of folic acid supplements can lead to the building up of unprocessed folic acid in the body, which can lead to the following conditions-

Autism

It is a neurological disorder affecting the brain development .

Impaired immune function

High intake of folic acid

• It suppresses the immune system of the body .
• It reduces the activity of natural killer cells(inborn immune cells that fight against the body’s stress)

Cancer

High folic acid intake

• It might cause abnormal cell growth to progress further increases the risk of prostate cancer ¹⁴Toxicity | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Deficiency

Folic acid deficiency

What are the causes of folic acid deficiency?

• Not eating a balanced diet
• Overcooking of the vegetables and fruits because folic acid is destroyed by heat during cooking.
• Diseases of the digestive system that prevent the folic acid absorption
• Hemolytic anemia
• Kidney patients on dialysis
• Excessive alcohol consumption

Folic acid deficiency symptoms

• Headache
• Irritability
• Extreme tiredness
• Weakness
• Difficulty in concentration
• Difficulty in breathing
• Rapid heartbeat
• Color change of hair, skin, and fingernails
• Abscess (boil) in mouth and tongue
• Diarrhea
• Gray hair

People are at high risk of folic acid deficiency

• Woman of childbearing age
• Pregnant woman
• Aged people
• People living on a folate-deficient diet
• Irritable bowel syndrome ( a condition that affects the intestine)
• Celiac disease( a condition that damages the immune system)
• Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase(MTHFR) gene polymorphism MTHFR gene mutation affects the folate’s ability to convert to its active form leading to an increased level of homocysteine amino acid in the blood.
• At high levels, homocysteine damages the arterial lining ¹⁶Vulnerability | Researched based study from Sciencedirect.com

Side effects

Side effects of folic acid

• Nausea and vomiting
• Stomach gas (bloating)
• Stomach pain
• Appetite loss
• Difficulty in sleeping
• Difficulty in concentration
• Feeling of hopelessness
• Anxiety
• Unpleasant taste on the tongue ¹⁵Side effects | Researched based study from Sciencedirect.com

People who should refrain from taking folic acid

Persons with the following condition should avoid using folic acid-

• Kidney disease
• Liver disease
• Type 2 diabetes(high blood sugar level)
• Seizure disorder (epilepsy)
• Alcoholism (person addicted to alcohol)
• Rheumatoid arthritis( a condition that affects the joints)
• Lupus( is a condition in which the immune cells damage the healthy cells of the body)
• Hemolytic anemia (a disease in which red blood cells are damaged faster)
• Any chronic infection

Interactions

Interactions of folic acid

Folic acid may interact with the following medications

Phenytoin

• Phenytoin is an antiseizure medicine
• Taking folic acid and phenytoin together might decrease the effectiveness of the drug.¹⁷Interactions | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Fosphenytoin

• Fosphenytoin is used to treat seizures(sudden changes in movement due to uncontrolled electrical activity between brain cells)
• Taking folic acid along with fosphenytoin decreases the effect of the drug.

Primidone

• Primadone is an anticonvulsant medicine
• Taking folic acid with primidone might decrease the efficiency of the drug

Capecitabine

• Capecitabine is a medicine to treat cancer
• Taking folic acid and capecitabine together increases the side effects of the drug capecitabine

Pyremithamine

• Pyremithamine is used for treating parasitic infections
• Folic acid and pyremithamine, when taken together, reduce the effectiveness of the drug

Phenobarbital

• Phenobarbital is an anticonvulsant drug
• Folic acid and Phenobarbital, when taken together, reduces the effectiveness of the drug

5-Fluorouracil

• 5-Fluorouracil is used for cancer treatment
• Taking folic acid and 5-Fluorouracil together increases the side effects of the drug.

Some other drugs that interact with folic acid are as follows

• Tetracycline
• Pyrimethamine
• Nitrofurantoin
• Barbiturate
• Methotrexate
• Primidone ¹⁷Interactions | Researched based study from Nlm.nih.gov

Takeaway

Key Takeaways

• Folic acid is the synthetic(artificial) Vitamin B9
• Most people can get folate from naturally occurring fruits and vegetables
• People deficient in folate can get it through folic acid supplements or tablets
• One must always take advice from a registered health practitioner before consuming folic acid supplements