Folate May Prevent Alcohol Damage In Festuses
A study on mice suggests that high levels of the B vitamin folate – folic acid – prevented heart-related birth defects caused by alcohol exposure during early pregnancy, a condition known as fetal alcohol syndrome.
Alcohol-related congenital heart defects can develop in the embryo during a period when a woman may still be drinking because she does not yet know she is pregnant, a period of perhaps 16 to 18 days. The dose of folate required was considerably larger than the standard dietary recommendation of 400 micrograms.
The researchers stressed that the protective effect was only seen when folate was taken very early in pregnancy and prior to the time of alcohol exposure. The study was released in brief summary format but the full-text version is available for the payment of a fee at the following web page of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology:
http://bit.ly/cP8J7b.