|
Women who take supplemental folate during
pregnancy may lower their risk of having a baby who develops
the most common form of childhood leukemia.
According to a report on 83 children
diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 166
healthy children, those whose mothers had taken both folate
and iron supplements during pregnancy were about 60%
less likely to develop ALL.
The protective effect of folate remained
regardless of when the mother began taking the supplement
or the length of time it was taken.
The findings may
help women to lower their risk of having a baby who is diagnosed
with ALL -- an aggressive and often fatal disease
of the white blood cells for which no known risk factors exist.
It is possible that a deficiency of folate,
which is crucial for cell growth and metabolism and the synthesis
of DNA, could lead to breaks in strands of DNA and to chromosomal
abnormalities.
The
Lancet December 8, 2001;358:1935-1940
| 