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
Another unexpected benefit for folic acid supplementation. Who knows how many other as yet unrecognized diseases or health impairments are resolved by following an optimized diet.
If a woman is not consuming one pound of vegetables for every fifty pounds of body weight than it would probably be wise to take a supplement to make sure she is receiving an optimum amount of folic acid.
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