Vitamin B9 (Folinic acid/Calcium Folinate)

Folate deficiency can lead to homocysteine accumulation which can lead to placenta abnormalities and hence risk of miscarriage (1). In addition, intake of folate can reduce the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida by more than 50%, spina bifida is a leading cause of childhood paralysis. Furthermore, folate may reduce the risk of other congenital malformations such as urinary tract and cardiovascular defects. While most adults need 400 mcg of folate daily, pregnant women need 600 mcg. To be sure you get this, it’s suggested that you take a supplement with 400-500 mcg of folate and that you get the rest of your folate from your diet from foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, and citrus fruits. Folinic acid is a metabolically active form of folic acid that does not require the enzymatic conversion. It is a folate substance that is stable when isolated. Some pregnancy supplements may provide 800 mcg or more of folic acid which is double the recommended amount from a supplement. This means that a pregnancy supplement with 800 mcg of folic acid gives you the equivalent of 1,360 mcg of folate. In addition to the 300 to 400 mcg of folate you are likely already getting from foods, pregnant woman can easily have a total of over 2000 mcg of folate per day. As a result, any supplement with more than 586 mcg of folic acid will cause you to exceed the limit. Selancy Women has a safe level of 540 mcg Calcium Folinate equivalent to 500 mcg of Folinic acid. Prolonged intake of excessive Folic acid can cause kidney damage and can complicate the diagnosis of vitamin B-12 deficiency as Folic acid supplementation may mask a symptom of vitamin B-12 deficiency. It is estimated that a third of the human population have a gene mutation named MTHFR. MTHFR stands for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase. Inheriting a MTHFR variant can affect the conversion of Folic acid into active 5-MTHF. In some individuals, this may not manifest in tangible ways, while in others it could cause a deficit of functional Folate and affect the whole-body process of methylation, leading to extra homocysteine and more. A person with an MTHFR variant is unable to activate synthetic Folic acid into Folate due to the fact that they do not produce enough of an enzyme called Dihydrofolate Reductase. This unmetabolized Folic acid ends up in the blood stream, which may lead to health issues such as cognitive decline ,susceptibility to certain cancers and neural tube birth defects. Low levels of vitamin B9/Folate are associated with an increased risk of several health conditions, including: • Elevated homocysteine. High homocysteine levels have been associated with an increased risk of heart disease and stroke (2). • Birth defects. Low folate levels in pregnant women have been linked to birth abnormalities, such as neural tube defects (3).