Folic Acid during Pregnancy Reduces Risk of Autism

Women can reduce the risk of giving birth to autistic children by choosing the right diet. The latest study suggests that those women who consumed supplements of folic acid during pregnancy were less likely to give birth to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Data according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that 1 in 88 American children suffer with autism spectrum disorder.

Folic acid is a water soluble form of vitamin B9. And it is important for the normal body growth and functioning. Lack of this vitamin causes anemia known as megaloblastic anemia. Leafy green vegetables, liver, egg yolk, beetroot, oranges, soya products and peas are foods rich in folic acid.

The study, published in the Journal of American Medical Association, states that women who took the folic acid supplements before and during pregnancy were 40 percent less likely to have an autistic kid.

For this study, Norwegian researchers evaluated the health records of 85,000 children born in Norway during 1995-2009. They checked whether these kids had been diagnosed with ASD. There was a questionnaire filled by pregnant women that enquired on the use of folic acid supplements during the first eight weeks of pregnancy and before that.

The researchers noticed that out of 85,176 children, 270 kids were diagnosed with ASD. Out of them, 114 children (13 percent) had autistic disorders, 56 kids (7 percent) had Asperger's syndrome and 100 children (12 percent) were diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder, reports Inquistir.

"The finding that periconceptional supplement use might reduce the risk of autism is encouraging; however, it is important to confirm this finding in other population-based birth cohorts," Dr. Robert Barry of the CDC's Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disorders was quoted as saying in The Inquisitr.

Consuming folic acid in later pregnancy did not affect the chances of the mother giving birth to a kid with ASD.

Prior to this, there were studies conducted which showed that kids born to women consuming folic acid supplements were less likely to have speech delay.