Folic acid was something your mother never
thought about when she was expecting you.
---- The change came in 1991, when a British
medical study demonstrated that folic acid, a
nutrient in the B vitamin family, reduced the
recurrence of birth defects of the brain and spinal
cord. This reduction occurred in cases where a
mother’s previous child was affected by as much as
80%. Later studies have shown that even among
women who have never had children with brain or
spinal cord defects, those who consume enough
folic acid can lower their baby’s risk of spinal, brain
and skull defects by 50% to 70%.