![]() ![]() Though neural tube defects are caused by a complex array of factors, healthcare providers and scientists believe that low folic acid intake can play a large role in the development of a neural tube defect in a fetus. Neural tube defects occur in about 6.5 cases per 10,000 live births in the U.S. When the neural tube doesn’t close properly, what’s known as a neural tube defect can result, including conditions such as spina bifida (when the neural tube doesn’t completely close over the spine) and anencephaly (when the neural tube doesn’t close completely at the top). This process happens in the first few weeks of pregnancy-often before you even know you’re pregnant. This tube fuses over the spinal cord, spinal tissues (meninges), and spinal nerves. Long answer: The fetus’s neural tube, which is the fetus’s developing spinal cord and brain, is one of its first parts to develop. Short answer: As soon as you decide you want to get pregnant-but at least a month before you’re expecting or once you find out you’re expecting is ideal. Adults should consume 400 micrograms of folic acid (also called folate) every day, while ACOG recommends that pregnant women get 600 mcg of folic acid a day, 400 mcg of which should be from a supplement. “It’s a very high volume that I find in general is hard to eat indefinitely as you get later in pregnancy and don’t have so much space in your stomach.” On top of that, food aversions might make it difficult for you to eat your leafy greens, whole grains, fresh fish, or other nutritious foods.Ĭertain micronutrients, most notably folic acid, are critical to fetal development, and pregnant people need particularly high amounts to support the health of the baby and mom. “You would have to eat a bunch of livers and, like, five cups of lentils” every day to get enough iron through diet alone, Smith says. Take iron, for example, which is important for fetal brain development consuming low amounts of iron can cause a pregnant person to develop anemia, which is when a person doesn’t have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body. “Good diet is good, but during this special time, a prenatal vitamin can be helpful to make sure you have all your bases covered,” says Emily Smith, an assistant professor of global health and nutrition at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. And because the effects of nutrient deficiencies can be particularly dire during pregnancy-preeclampsia and fetal neural tube defects among them-it’s especially important that pregnant people meet their nutritional needs. Pregnant people have higher micronutrient needs to support growing a new organ (the placenta) and the fetus while maintaining their own physical health. ![]() But pregnancy is a different ballgame: Pregnant and lactating people have increased nutritional needs compared with others. Most Americans don’t need supplements unless their doctor tells them they have a deficiency in a particular nutrient.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |