Folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy in the Newborn Epigenetics STudy (NEST).
Abstract
<h4>Background</h4>Folic acid (FA) added to foods during fortification is 70-85% bioavailable
compared to 50% of folate occurring naturally in foods. Thus, if FA supplements also
are taken during pregnancy, both mother and fetus can be exposed to FA exceeding the
Institute of Medicine's recommended tolerable upper limit (TUL) of 1,000 micrograms
per day (μg/d) for adult pregnant women. The primary objective is to estimate the
proportion of women taking folic acid (FA) doses exceeding the TUL before and during
pregnancy, and to identify correlates of high FA use.<h4>Methods</h4>During 2005-2008,
pre-pregnancy and pregnancy-related data on dietary supplementation were obtained
by interviewing 539 pregnant women enrolled at two obstetrics-care facilities in Durham
County, North Carolina.<h4>Results</h4>Before pregnancy, 51% of women reported FA
supplementation and 66% reported this supplementation during pregnancy. Before pregnancy,
11.9% (95% CI = 9.2%-14.6%) of women reported supplementation with FA doses above
the TUL of 1,000 μg/day, and a similar proportion reported this intake prenatally.
Before pregnancy, Caucasian women were more likely to take FA doses above the TUL
(OR = 2.99; 95% = 1.28-7.00), compared to African American women, while women with
chronic conditions were less likely to take FA doses above the TUL (OR = 0.48; 95%CI
= 0.21-0.97). Compared to African American women, Caucasian women were also more likely
to report FA intake in doses exceeding the TUL during pregnancy (OR = 5.09; 95%CI
= 2.07-12.49).<h4>Conclusions</h4>Fifty-one percent of women reported some FA intake
before and 66% during pregnancy, respectively, and more than one in ten women took
FA supplements in doses that exceeded the TUL. Caucasian women were more likely to
report high FA intake. A study is ongoing to identify possible genetic and non-genotoxic
effects of these high doses.
Type
Journal articleSubject
HumansPregnancy Complications
Chronic Disease
Folic Acid
Body Size
Prenatal Care
Prospective Studies
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Smoking
Marital Status
Epigenesis, Genetic
Gestational Age
Pregnancy
Socioeconomic Factors
Dietary Supplements
Adult
Infant, Newborn
African Americans
Asian Americans
European Continental Ancestry Group
Hispanic Americans
North Carolina
Female
Surveys and Questionnaires
Catchment Area, Health
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24636Published Version (Please cite this version)
10.1186/1471-2458-11-46Publication Info
Hoyo, Cathrine; Murtha, Amy P; Schildkraut, Joellen M; Forman, Michele R; Calingaert,
Brian; Demark-Wahnefried, Wendy; ... Murphy, Susan K (2011). Folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy in the Newborn Epigenetics
STudy (NEST). BMC public health, 11(1). pp. 46. 10.1186/1471-2458-11-46. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24636.This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this
article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
Collections
More Info
Show full item recordScholars@Duke
Joanne Kurtzberg
Jerome S. Harris Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics
Dr. Kurtzberg is an internationally renowned expert in pediatric hematology/oncology,
pediatric blood and marrow transplantation, umbilical cord blood banking and transplantation,
and novel applications of cord blood and birthing tissues in the emerging fields of
cellular therapies and regenerative medicine. Dr. Kurtzberg serves as the Director
of the Marcus Center for Cellular Cures (MC3), Director of the Pediatric Transplant
and Cellular Therapy Program, Director of the Carolina
Susan Kay Murphy
Associate Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology
Dr. Murphy is a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
and serves as Chief of the Division of Reproductive Sciences. As a molecular biologist
with training in human epigenetics, her research interests are largely centered around
the role of epigenetic modifications in health and disease. Dr. Murphy has ongoing
projects on gynecologic malignancies, including approaches to eradicate ovarian cancer
cells that survive chemotherapy and later give r
Amy Patricia Murtha
Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Dr. Amy Murtha is a Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Department
of Pediatrics, and past Vice Chair for Research in Obstetrics and Gynecology. After
graduating from the Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1992 she completed her residency
in OB-GYN and fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) at Duke University then
joined the faculty at Duke in 1998.
Dr. Murtha served as interim Chair for the Department of OB-GYN and Fellowship Director
for the mater
Joellen Martha Schildkraut
Professor Emeritus in Family Medicine and Community Health
Dr. Schildkraut is an epidemiologist whose research includes the molecular epidemiology
of ovarian, breast and brain cancers. Dr. Schildkraut's research interests include
the study of the interaction between genetic and environmental factors. She is currently
involved in a large study of genome wide association and ovarian cancer risk and survival.
Some of her work is also focused on particular genetic pathways including the DNA
repair and apoptosis pathways. She currently leads a study of
Alphabetical list of authors with Scholars@Duke profiles.

Articles written by Duke faculty are made available through the campus open access policy. For more information see: Duke Open Access Policy
Rights for Collection: Scholarly Articles
Works are deposited here by their authors, and represent their research and opinions, not that of Duke University. Some materials and descriptions may include offensive content. More info