Young women need folate and so do their progeny

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This week, we haven t had much that s positive to say about dietary supplements. However, the results of a new Norwegian study have reminded us that, despite the questionable utility of most supplements, folic acid actually offers real benefits. Folic acid supplementation in women of childbearing age has long been shown to help prevent major birth defects in a fetus developing brain and spine. Now, research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy cuts in half a child s risk of having a serious language delay.

Researchers from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health examined data from a prospective observational study of pregnant women and their children through age three. Of the 39,000 children in the study, 204 went on to develop a severe language delay. It turns out that 0.9 percent of the children whose mothers did not take folic acid supplements experienced such delays, while language delays were seen in only 0.4 percent of children whose mothers did take them. Researchers think that the nutrient s effect on the developing nervous system may explain the difference.

ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross finds the study s conclusions quite plausible. Since it s already been established that folic acid plays a role in normal development of the central nervous system, he says, it s not a huge stretch to think that it also has some effect on how the language centers in the brain develop.