IJERPH, Vol. 17, Pages 638: Dietary Folate Intake and Folic Acid Supplements among Pregnant Women from Southern Italy: Evidence from the “Mamma & amp; Bambino ” Cohort

IJERPH, Vol. 17, Pages 638: Dietary Folate Intake and Folic Acid Supplements among Pregnant Women from Southern Italy: Evidence from the “Mamma & Bambino” Cohort International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health doi: 10.3390/ijerph17020638 Authors: Martina Barchitta Andrea Maugeri Roberta Magnano San Lio Giuliana Favara Claudia La Mastra Maria Clara La Rosa Antonella Agodi Folate requirement among women who plan to become pregnant should be raised to 600 μg/day during the periconceptional period. To meet this need, several countries began to promote the use of folic acid supplements before and during pregnancy. Here, we investigated prevalence and determinants of dietary folate intake and folic acid supplement use among 397 pregnant women (aged 15–50 years old, median = 37 years old). We also investigated their effects on neonatal outcomes in a subgroup of women who completed pregnancy. For doing that, we used data from the “Mamma & Bambino” project, an ongoing mother-child cohort settled in Catania (Italy). Inadequate folate intake was evaluated using a Food Frequency Questionnaire and defined as an intake < 600 μg/day. Women were also classified as non-users (i.e., women who did not use folic acid supplements), insufficient users (i.e., women who did not take folic acid supplements as recommended), and recommended users of folic acid supplem...
Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Article Source Type: research