what happens if you don't take folic acid during pregnancy?
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If you do not get enough folic acid before and during pregnancy, your baby is at higher risk for neural tube defects. Neural tube defects are serious birth defects that affect the spine, spinal cord, or brain and may cause death. These include: Spina bifida.
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When Should You Take Prenatal Vitamins? Folic acid should be started at least one month prior to conception. It's best to start taking prenatal vitamins while you're trying to get pregnant. The birth defects prevented by folic acid happen within the first few weeks of pregnancy -- before you even know you're expecting.
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All pregnant women should take at least 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid daily. Many pre-natal vitamins contain 600 mcg of folic acid. Taking folic acid after you discover you're pregnant may not be soon enough. Many women don't realize they're pregnant until six weeks or more after conception.
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Folic acid is necessary for healthy skin, hair, and nails. Therefore, folic acid deficiency may cause sores in the mouth, and changes in the color of the skin, hair, or fingernails.
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Side effects. Folic acid is generally regarded as safe. Side effects are rare. High doses of folic acid can cause nausea, bloating, gas, and insomnia.
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There's no evidence that folic acid reduces fertility in men or women. Folic acid does not help you get pregnant, but it's recommended while you're trying for a baby and in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
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Can folic acid help with morning sickness? In some cases, women have trouble getting their folic acid supplement due to morning sickness. Upadhyaya says if nausea and vomiting is preventing you from keeping down your prenatal multivitamin, the first stop should be talking to your midwife or doctor.
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Folic acid before and during pregnancy You should take a 400 micrograms folic acid tablet every day before you're pregnant and until you're 12 weeks pregnant. Folic acid can help prevent birth defects known as neural tube defects, including spina bifida.
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There are two vitamins that are very important in pregnancy and that you can take as a supplement: folic acid and vitamin D.
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Increasing your folic acid intake should not lead to weight gain – especially if increasing it through healthy diet and natural supplements. However, folate deficiency could result in weight loss.
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When do I need to start taking prenatal vitamins? Start taking folic acid at least 1 month before you start trying to get pregnant. The first few weeks of pregnancy are a really important time for fetal health and development. Taking folic acid and other prenatal vitamins can help reduce the risk of some birth defects.
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Folic acid before and during pregnancy Folic acid can help prevent birth defects known as neural tube defects, including spina bifida. If you did not take folic acid before you conceived, you should start as soon as you find out you're pregnant.
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But even though folic acid is important, taking too much could be problematic. Research is pointing to some possible negative effects of consuming too much folic acid, such as impaired fetal growth, increased risks of childhood diseases like asthma and autism, and promoting the growth of some cancer cells.
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The first few weeks of pregnancy are a really important time for fetal health and development. Taking folic acid and other prenatal vitamins can help reduce the risk of some birth defects. Keep taking prenatal vitamins throughout your entire pregnancy.
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Folic acid is a B vitamin that helps your body make red blood cells. If you don't have enough red blood cells, you have anemia.
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It has been demonstrated that low serum folate levels are related to increased cardiovascular risk. Epidemiologic evidence suggests that a deficiency of folic acid may lead to hypertension, and a negative association between plasma folic acid and blood pressure (BP) has been reported.
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Folic acid helps make healthy red blood cells, which carry oxygen around the body. If we do not have enough folic acid, the body can make abnormally large red blood cells that do not work properly. This causes folate deficiency anaemia, which can cause tiredness and other symptoms.