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.

When should I take it?

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.

Can I get it in my food instead of in a vitamin?

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.

Bottom Line

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.

Looking at Food Labels

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.