Nutrition during pregnancy Latvia eng

 

3.5   Folate  and  other  B  vitamins    

B   vitamins   play   a   significant   role   in   controlling   energy   metabolism,   help   to   reduce   insulin  

resistance  and  are  important  for  growth,  including  development  of  the  nervous  system  and  the  

brain.   A   deficit   of   folic   acid   (folate)   causes   anaemia   and   is   also   associated   with   neural   tube  

defects,  poor  fetal  development  in  the  antenatal  period,  fetal  malformations,  premature  birth  

and   low   birth   weight.   Neural   tube   defects   are   among   the   most   common   multifactorial  

hereditary  fetal  conditions,  and  use  of  folic  acid  supplements  before  conception  can  prevent  up  

to  46%  of  cases.  Children  born  to  obese  women  are  more  prone  to  neural  tube  defects  than  the  

offspring   of   women   of   normal   weight,   and   children   born   to   obese   women   in   disadvantaged  

social  and  economic  communities  are  at  even  greater  risk,  as  it  is  highly  unlikely  that  mothers  in  

these  communities  use  dietary  folic  acid  supplements.  

Folate  deficiency  is  also  a  risk  factor  for  cardiovascular  diseases.  Like  other  B  vitamins,  folates  

participate  in  the  metabolism  of  homocysteine,  which  may  contribute  to  the  development  of  

atherosclerosis  by  damaging  the  inner  surfaces  of  arteries  and  creating  blood  clots.  The  level  of  

homocysteine  depends  on  genetic  factors  and  the  dietary  intake  of  folates,  vitamins  B6  and  B12:  

higher  concentrations  of  these  vitamins  in  the  bloodstream  correlate  with  lower  homocysteine  

levels.  Low  levels  of  folic  acid  are  associated  with  a  higher  life-­‐long  risk  for  fatal  coronary  heart  

disease  and  infarction.