The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently sounded the alarm after a study revealed an 8 percent to 16 percent drop in blood levels of folate – or folic acid – among women of child-bearing age.

Folic acid, a B vitamin, is not vital only for women during their child-bearing years; we all need it because it’s crucial for making healthy new body cells.

Studies have linked folic acid to prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. Other research has shown a relationship between lower levels of folic acid and higher rates of colorectal cancer.

as well as the development of a form of anemia.

Here are some tips to help you make sure your folate blood levels are where they’re supposed to be:

1. The CDC recommends that women of child-bearing age, in particular, consume 400 micrograms of folic acid every day. But everybody – women or not, pregnant or not – needs that same amount daily, according to Heather Carter, a nutrition epidemiologist with the CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.

An easy way to meet that requirement, according to the CDC, is by taking a folic acid supplement or a regular multivitamin that provides the 400 mcg (or 0.4 milligrams). This constitutes 100 percent of the recommended daily value for folic acid. Check the “Supplement Facts” label, look for “folic acid” or “folate” and make sure you see “100 percent” under the daily value column.

If you’re planning on having children, don’t wait until you’re pregnant to start taking your supplement because you’ll want your folic acid levels in place to better ensure a healthy baby.

Once you’re pregnant, check with your doctor to see if you should increase your folic acid level. But it’s not a good idea to take more than 1,000 mcg of folic acid daily, according to Arizona registered dietitian Melinda Johnson, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. Too much folic acid can mask a deficiency of another important vitamin, B12, she says.

In general, though, you probably won’t have to worry about consuming too much folic acid because it’s a water-soluble vitamin. This means your body will excrete the folic acid it doesn’t use, according to Karen Ensle, a registered dietitian and a community health sciences educator for Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County, N.J.

2. Yes, you can meet your body’s daily requirement for folic acid with a supplement or vitamin pill. But you should also work at eating a variety of healthful foods, dietitians say.

Folic acid usually works in conjunction with other vitamins, including vitamins C, B6 and B12, to benefit the body. Eating a variety of foods will provide you with those vitamin and mineral partners.

“When something needs partners to do good stuff in the body, it’s not a good idea to pick one nutrient and hope that does some good,” says Susan Moores, a registered dietitian in Minnesota and an ADA spokeswoman.

3. Eating a bowl of cereal that’s been fortified with folic acid and contains 100 percent of the daily value is one convenient way to fill your quota through food.

4. A rich source of folate can be found in enriched foods fortified with folic acid. These are the so-called white products, such as flour, breads, pasta, rolls, cornmeal and white rice.

5. But don’t ignore whole-grain carbs, such as whole wheat, even though they’re not fortified with folic acid. Folate naturally occurs in whole grains, although in lesser amounts than those found in the white, enriched products, says Ensle. In addition, whole grains can supply you with those essential vitamins and nutrients not found in the more processed white products, according to Johnson, the Arizona dietitian.

6. Fruits and vegetables are excellent natural sources of folate. “But the reality is, the American diet is not high enough in fruits and vegetables, which is the key factor here,” says Ensle. So, at least try to work more fruits and vegetables into your diet.

Folate-rich sources include dark green, leafy vegetables (such as spinach, romaine and mixed greens), broccoli, green peas, asparagus, lentils, oranges, orange juice, bananas, strawberries, pineapples and nuts, including peanuts.

Shoot for seven to nine servings, which might sound like a lot but shouldn’t be too tough to do, as long as you spread your servings out throughout the day, dietitians say. For example, Ensle suggests topping your morning bowl of cereal with slices of orange, including some dark, leafy greens in your sandwich, making a fruit salad, a fruit kabob or fruit smoothie, or eating two salads daily that include chopped vegetables and, if you like, a sprinkling of oranges on top.

JM END NUGENT

(Meg Nugent is a staff writer for The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J. She can be contacted at mnugent(at)starledger.com.)

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