Students Push Benefits of Folic Acid

You may have gotten used to your parents telling you to brush your teeth every morning.

But did they ever tell you to take your folic acid vitamin?

Students for Healthy Babies (SHB), a recently formed student group at Harvard, said they hope that one day, parents will do both.

"We want taking folic acid to become a habit like brushing your teeth," said SHB president Wendy H. Liu '03.

SHB members are promoting folic acid awareness week outside of the Science Center, handing out green ribbons and pamphlets yesterday and today, peanuts and vitamins tomorrow and Thursday and green cups on Friday.

University Health Services (UHS) worked with SHB to provide both information and financial support for the week.

According to Liu, UHS donated $600 to SHB, which was used primarily to print green plastic cups, which will be handed out this Friday.

Although Folic Acid Awareness Week is geared primarily towards preventing birth defects, UHS Director Dr. David S. Rosenthal '59 said this week is valuable for promoting general nutrition awareness on campus.

"There are a lot of eating concerns on campus," he said. "This week promotes the eating concerns issue through a back-door approach."

"There is no question folic acid is a very important vitamin," said Rosenthal, who is also a former president of the American Cancer Society.

Folic acid, or folate, is a B vitamin. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention website, folic acid can prevent up to 70 percent of neural tube birth defects when taken before and during pregnancy.

Such defects deform the spine and brain and can lead to death, paralysis and incontinence.

Students for Healthy Babies further publicized the week through table tents in the dining halls, the digital display in Loker and green posters bearing cryptic messages such as "B" and "Broccoli / Peanuts / Oranges."

SHB was started in February and has about 10 members. The group wants to focus on teen mothers and pregnant teens, and hopes eventually to make presentations in local high schools on ways of preventing birth defects.

By the time a mother realizes she is pregnant, the child's spine and brain are already formed.

According to ViaHealth, a health services company, because up to 50 percent of pregnancies are unplanned, eating an adequate amount of folic acid before pregnancy is crucial. The site said two-thirds of women in this country do not consume enough folic acid.

Folic acid has also recently been linked to the prevention of colon cancer, heart disease and dementia in both men and women. A deficiency in folate can lead to severe anemia.

Folic acid is found primarily in leafy, dark green vegetables, citrus fruits, legumes and enriched breakfast cereals.

A large glass of orange juice and a bowl of fortified cereal for breakfast provide 50 to 100 percent of the recommended daily allowance of folic acid.

In the spring, SHB was closely involved with March of Dimes WalkAmerica, and plans to do the same next year.