Benefits of Folic Acid include
Helps prevent birth defects
Promotes healthier looking skin- by helping produce new skin cells
Strengthens immunity- by aiding in the proper formation and functioning of white blood cells.
Depression—can dramatically improve mood. (Depression is the most common symptom of folic acid deficiency)
Helps cervical dysplasia, cervical cancer, lactation, and osteoporosis.
Helps prevent heart disease
Wound and gut healing
Colitis
Gastrointestinal problems
Restless leg syndrome
HIV infection
Brain Disorders
Cerebrospinal fluid contains-or should contain strong concentration of folic acid, because the nutrient is essential to the brain's health. In older people a below par level can contribute to dementia, while supplementation, conversely, can greatly improve their mental processes. Deficiencies have been found in people who have epilepsy as well as such psychiatric disorders as depression, mania, and schizophrenia.1
Depression
Many chemicals responsible for the brain's health and emotional balance are dependent on folic acid, but what's sufficient one person may not be enough for someone else. People who become depressed, for instance, may have a higher need for the nutrient than do non-depressed, otherwise healthy people. It is known that depressed patients with low folate levels respond poorly to antidepressant drugs.2 Once the greater need is satisfied, mental disposition can improve markedly as it does with drugs. A 50 mg dose of folic acid (in the form of methyl folate) can, according to one study, treat depression as effectively as the drug amitriptyline.3
Preventing Neural Tube Defects
By taking a greater dose of folic acid starting a few months before conception, women can completely prevent the neural tube of their fetus from developing improperly. The resulting conditions are Spina bifida, in which the spinal cord doesn't close completely, an anencephaly, in which a large portion of the brain is missing.4
The U.S. Public Health Service has issued a recommendation that all women of child-bearing age take supplemental folic acid to reduce their chances of having children with spina bifida or other neural tube defects (NTDs). About 2,300 babies with NTDs are born annually. Numerous studies have indicated the usefulness of supplemental folic acid in preventing these disorders. Despite this evidence, the FDA opposes the USPHS recommendation (NY Times, 9-15-92).
Cancer
Folic acid can reverse cervical dysplasia, and stop the development of cervical cancer. Low folic acid readings are also associated with cancer of the throat and colorectal cancer.5 A year-long course of the nutrient reversed dysplasia in smokers’ lungs and, in a separate study, in the colon. Supplements also cut in half the percentage of people whom colitis leads to cancer.6
References:
- Carney, M.W.P., et al., Journal of Affective Disorders, 1990; 9: 207-13.
- Fava, M., American Journal of Psychiatry, 1997; 154: 426-28.
- Crellin, R., et al., paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Dublin, July 24-27, 1992.
- Robert C. Atkins, M.D., Dr. Atkins’ Vita-Nutrient Solution; 1998:69-72.
- Butterworth, C.E., Jr., Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 1993; 12(4): 438-41.
- Haile, R. W., et al., Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, 1995; 4: 709-14.
- Kato I et al. Serum folate, homocysteine and colorectal cancer risk in women: a nested case-control study. Br J Cancer. 1999; 79: 1917-22
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