Are you confused about the difference between folic acid
vs folate? Stay tuned and I'll explain...
Welcome! My name is Melanie McGrice and I'm a fertility and prenatal dietitian.
I help couples boost their fertility and give their baby's the best start possible
with the power of good food. Make sure you connect with me on my socials...
you'll find all the details in the description box below this video.
So, what's the difference between folic acid vs folate?
Well, simply put, they are slightly different versions of the same thing. For example,
cheddar is a type of cheese. You can call cheddar cheese 'cheese' or you can call cheddar cheese
'cheddar', and both people would be right. Folate is the umbrella term for this important vitamin
(just like cheese is the umbrella term for cheddar and brie and camembert). However,
when someone says 'folate', they're usually referring to the vitamin found in food.
Folic acid is the synthetic version of the vitamin which we get from supplements and fortified foods.
But, to make things even more complicated, there are a heap of other terms for folate,
or vitamin B9 which is another generic description for the vitamin.
Folinic acid, also known as 5-formyl tetrahydrofolate, is the 'active'
metabolite of folic acid. Supplementation with folinic acid alleviates the need for the enzyme
dihydrofolate reductase and bypasses some of the steps that are required for absorption
with folic acid supplementation. Bioavailability of folinic acid appears to be much higher than
that of folic acid, with human absorption studies showing a bioavailability of 92%.
5 methyltetrahydrofolate, also known as 5MTHF, levomefolate, Methylated folate, methylfolate
or Activated folate is the most well absorbed form of folate as it is what folate from foods becomes
after they are digested. 5MTHF can also be purchased as a supplement,
but is usually a lot more expensive than folic acid or folinic acid.
So, now that you're up to date with all the terminology, how do we best meet our needs?
Guidelines recommend 600 micrograms of dietary folate equivalents per day during pregnancy.
Some women need more, but this is the standard recommendation. Folate is also recommended when
trying to conceive, so check out my episode on the benefits of folate to learn why.
To receive 600 micrograms of folate from your diet you'd need to eat 4 slices of
fortified wholemeal bread, 1 cup spinach leaves, 1 fresh orange, 1 cup cooked pasta,
2 slices cheddar cheese, 1 handful of peanuts, 4 spears of asparagus and 1 potato each day.
It's definitely achievable, but you do have to be incredibly conscious that you're meeting
all of your folate requirements daily as the repercussions of not meeting your requirements
during pregnancy are not worth it. Bread is now fortified with folic acid in many countries of
the world as it's even harder to meet your pregnancy folate requirements without it.
So, what do I recommend? Ideally: - eat a diet rich in wholegrains
and green leafy vegetables which are the richest dietary sources of natural folate,
- take a folic acid supplement of at least 400 micrograms per day for at least 3 months prior
to conception and throughout your pregnancy, - speak to a prenatal dietitian to determine
how much folate you personally require as many women require much more than 400 micrograms per
day... but you also don't want to take too much, - and, if you're having problems conceiving,
change your folic acid supplement to a supplement containing 5MTHF.
Make sure that you subscribe so that you can get access to more of my fertility and pregnancy
nutrition videos. And if you haven't done so already,
download my free fertility meal plan from melaniemcgrice.com/fertility.
I'll look forward to seeing you in my next video!