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Preparing for Pregnancy
Lifestyle Changes | What to Avoid | Exercise |
Stress |
What is it?
Folate is a B vitamin found in a variety of foods and added to many vitamin and mineral supplements as folic acid, a synthetic form of folate. Folate is needed both before and in the first weeks of pregnancy and can help reduce serious and common birth defects called neural tube defects, which affect the brain and the spinal cord.
The U.S. Public Health Service currently recommends that all women of childbearing age (15 to 45) get 400 micrograms of folic acid a day. The daily value jumps to 800 micrograms during pregnancy.
All women who could become pregnant, and that means you if you are in the planning stage, take a multivitamin containing 400 micrograms of folic acid daily. This is the only way to be absolutely certain you are getting enough.
Although it's recommended to eat a diet rich in folic acid, you still should take a multivitamin containing 400 micrograms of folic acid every day while you are planning to become pregnant.
Folic acid is present naturally in fruits, dark-green leafy vegetables, dried beans and peas. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration required food manufacturers to fortify grain products as of 1998. Eating foritified breads and grains is another way to get folic acid in your diet.
Fortified breakfast cereals, enriched grainproducts and vitamins contain a synthetic form of folic acid that is more easily absorbed by the body than the natural form. It is not yet known whether consuming 400 micrograms of folate from foods every day provides the same level of protection against birth defects as 400 micrograms of the synthetic form.
Take a vitamin supplement with 400 micrograms of folic acid. Eat a folate rich diet. On become pregnant, increase the dose to 800 micrograms and continue eating a folate rich diet.
If a food label claims that the product is "high in folate or folic acid," it means a serving of the food provides 20 percent or more of the Daily Value of 400 micrograms of folic acid.
If a food labels says the food is a "good source" of folate, it means a serving of the food provides ten to 19 percent of the Daily Value of folic acid. Look on the label's Nutrition Facts panel to find the exact amount.
Using the following chart will help you ensure a folate rich diet.
Food Serving Size Amount (Micrograms) %Daily Value* Chicken liver 3.5 oz 770 193 Breakfast cereals 1/2 to 1 1/2 cup 100 to 400 25 to 100 Braised beef liver 3.5 oz 217 54 Lentils, cooked 1/2 cup 180 45 Chickpeas 1/2 cup 141 35 Asparagus 1/2 cup 132 33 Spinach, cooked 1/2 cup 131 33 Black beans 1/2 cup 128 32 Burrito with beans 2 118 30 Kidney beans 1/2 cup 115 29 Baked beans with pork 1 cup 92 23 Lima beans 1/2 cup 78 20 Tomato juice 1 cup 48 12 Brussels sprouts 1/2 cup 47 12 Orange 1 medium 47 12 Broccoli, cooked 1/2 cup 39 10 Fast-food French fries large order 38 10 Wheat germ 2 tbsp 38 10 Fortified white bread 1 slice 38 10
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As the world’s top supplier of commercial blood pressure monitors and health management systems, Lifeclinic is committed to helping to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals across the globe. Active monitoring of blood pressure, heart rate, weight, body fat, body mass index (BMI) and blood oxygen levels when combined with proper diet, nutrition and physical fitness can help ensure a longer, more healthy lifestyle. © 2009 Lifeclinic International, Inc. |
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