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Folate
Gregory Jo, Adam Carbone, Anastasiya Shor
SBN1-02 Pd. 4 12/18/09 Mr. Crull Bx Sci
What is Folate?
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Folate or folic acid is really a water
soluble form of vitamin B9.
What Does it Do to Us?
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Folate is essential to the maintenance and
production of cells.
Folate is also needed to synthesize DNA and RNA,
as well as modify DNA to prevent cancer.
Folate is used in the production and development of
red blood cells, preventing anemia
Folate keeps the blood flowing which prevents build
up of homocysteine, an amino acid that can cause
cardiovascular disease, bone fractures and
Parkinson’s disease if left unchecked.
What does it Do to us? (cont.)
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Folate, by the same method of preventing build up of
homocysteine, also prevents build up of dementias, which can
cause Alzheimer’s AKA Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Folate also helps maintain the nervous sytem by keeping it
functioning through the synthesis of the neurotransmitters
that send signals throughout the nervous system
Folic acid is especially important to anemic people, pregnant
mothers, and those with heart problems
It helps maintain healthy blood cells, and reduces the risk for
birth defects.
Primary Deficiency Causes
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Deficiency of folate can occur when
the body requires larger intakes of
folate, or folate loss increases, but the
demand for more folate is not met.
When does Primary Deficiency
Occur?
Primary deficiency often occurs when a person is
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Pregnant and lactating (breastfeeding)
Abusing alcohol- linked to liver disease
Undergoing Kidney dialysis
Has anemia
Secondary Deficiency Causes
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Certain medications cause the body to
be unable to properly absorb the
required amounts of folate.
When does Secondary
Deficiency Occur?
Secondary deficiency occurs when a person is taking
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anticonvulsant medications (such as dilantin,
phenytoin and primidone)
metformin, a medication used to control sugar in
Diabetes II patients
sulfur drugs used to control inflammation in
patients with ulcerative colitis
some diuretics, like triamterene
some sedatives
methotrexate, which limits function of enzymes
requiring folate (often used to treat cancer)
Deficiency Effects
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- Loss of appetite and weight loss
- Weakness
- Sore tongue
- Headaches
- Heart palpations
- Irritability
- Increases risk of noise induced hearing
loss
What is a Toxic Dose of Folate?
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A toxic dose is defined as more than
1,000-2,000 micrograms
Effects of a toxic dose on the
Body
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-Nerve damage (too much folate in system
masks B12 deficiency)
-insomnia
-general discomfort, weakness
-irritability
-intestinal dysfunction.
Sources of Folate
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Cereals
baked goods
leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli, lettuce)
okra
asparagus
fruits (bananas, melons, lemons)
legumes
yeast
mushrooms
organ meat (beef liver, kidney)
orange juice
tomato juice
Peanut butter and sunflower seeds
Some grain products that have been enriched with it.
Fruit juices
Statistics on Ethnicity,
Geographical Location and
Susceptibility concerning Folate
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Studies showed that in an experiment conducted in
the USA over a time interval of 10 years, 860 men,
ranging from ages 65-84 showed a 95% agerelated increase of susceptibility to bladder cancer
due to a low folic acid intake.
In another experiment, it was found that mainly
Indian people are primarily susceptible to coronary
heart disease due to a lack of folic acid intake, of
whom 80% are from South India.
Bibiography
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http://www.righthealth.com/Health/What%20Is%20Folates?lid=yhoo-ads-sb-7460722696
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/folate.asp
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/folate/NS_patient-folate
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid
=63
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http://jech.bmj.com/content/54/1/31.full
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carcin.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/25/9/1639