What Is The Recommended Folic Acid Dosage For Women Trying To Conceive?

From day one of knowing you are pregnant, you have integrated good foods and started a healthy lifestyle. Even though you are having food and plenty of water, doctors recommended you take additional vitamins and supplements.

Vitamin(B9) or folic acid is prescribed to almost all pregnant ladies and ladies who are planning for a baby. You May be thinking even if you are intaking a healthy diet why should I eat the supplements?

Is Folic Acid A Gamesaver? Recommended Folic Acid Dosage

Does eating folate-rich food give you the folic acid required for pregnancy? The answer is simple. Even if you include folate-rich food in your diet it can’t provide the required folic acid.

Prevention is better than cure

Folic acid will help in the mental growth of your baby. It can reduce the risk of neural tube defects in the baby. These tubes are very important because it helps in the formation of the brain and spine.

This defect is formed when the tube doesn’t close properly. Spina bifida and anencephaly are two defects. They affect the spinal cord and brain respectively. Since there are no cures for neural tube defects, getting enough folic acid before pregnancy is always better.

It can also cause folate deficiency anemia. Anaemia is a condition where your body is not able to carry sufficient oxygen to the body. This mainly occurs in women of childbearing age.

When Should I Start Taking Folic Acid?

You should take folic acid before the two months of unprotected sex and should resume up to the 12 weeks of pregnancy. The neural tube only develops up to twelve weeks of pregnancy. You can either take folic acid separately or as multivitamins(contains folic acid).

How Much Should I Consume Folic Acid?

400 mcg is recommended every day. While buying try to buy a good branded one. It is available in almost all pharmacies, supermarkets and health food shops.

Higher dosage if:

400 mcg is recommended for a healthy pregnancy. but if you are facing any risk in your pregnancy the quantity is up to 5 mg. The condition where doctors recommend higher dosage include:

• Diabetic mother
• Neural tube defects in any of the couples
• Previous pregnancy history of neural tube defects in your or partner’s family
• Epilepsy in mother
• A mother who was a hard-drinking
• Mother is going through dialysis
• Suffering from inflammatory bowel disease 

Fortified foods

• Broccoli
• Brussel sprouts
• Spinach
• Peas
• Asparagus
• Chickpeas
• Cereals
• Bread and pasta

Frequently Asked Questions About Folic Acid Dosage

1) What Is Folate?

These are the collective terms to describe vitamin B9. They are found in fruits especially oranges, vegetables, spinach, poultry, and nuts.

2) What Will Happen If A Pregnant Lady Doesn’t Get Enough Vitamins?

They can suffer from defects such as Spina bifida and Anencephaly 

3) Swallowing Pills Is Fard For Me. What can I do?

Try a chewable or liquid product with folic acid if swallowing is hard for you

4) Can Folic Acid Increase The Chances Of Pregnancy?

Folic acid can improve the chance of pregnancy because they make irregular periods regular. Regular periods will help you to know ovulation.

Author Info

tmbadmin

Health Based Writer, More than 8 years experience in medical field