Can you get too much folic acid?

[Dinah]

Daft question I guess but just wanting to check as I'm taking Pregnacare conception (200% of your RDA!) and just started having a glass of gorgeous pomegranate and cherry juice every morning (yum! two of my fav fruits) and noticed on the side of carton it says it contains 100% of your RDA of folic acid lol.

Now, I'm keen on the idea of getting as much as possible as DH was born with hydrocephalus so I think its sensible for us to get FA but... can you have too much??

- Dinah

 

[Yatta89]

You shouldn't have more than 800mcg of FA a day to be on the safe side!!

 

[calm]

That has made me wonder, how many mcg are there in 100% RDA ?

 

[Yatta89]

100% of the RDA of folic acid for normal people is 400mcg. For pregnant/lactating women 800mcg....but my prenatals have 800mcg FA in them so that is what I just use.

 

[booflebump]

100% of the RDA of folic acid for normal people is 400mcg. For pregnant/lactating women 800mcg....but my prenatals have 800mcg FA in them so that is what I just use.

See, here RDA is 200mcg for normal people, 400mcg for those ttc or pregnant

 

[Yatta89]

100% of the RDA of folic acid for normal people is 400mcg. For pregnant/lactating women 800mcg....but my prenatals have 800mcg FA in them so that is what I just use.

See, here RDA is 200mcg for normal people, 400mcg for those ttc or pregnant

When you say "here" what do you mean?

 

[Yatta89]

This article says that while TTC you should have at least 400mcg FA/day and it says that once you become pregnant you should increase that number to at least 600mcg/day but no more than 1000mcg/day. It also says that most prescription prenatal vits have 800 to 1000mcg/day.

Folic Acid - Babycenter

Hope this helps!!

 

[dragonhawk]

I think what Boofle means by here, is in the UK. There are various differences between the medical recommendations in the US (or North America) and the UK.

 

[alex_85]

I'm a coeliac, and I read somewhere that I should take more folic acid than than a 'normal' woman. I know the reasoning behind this is that coeliacs can have problems absorbing nutrients, but I kinda dont get it, cos if I am eating a proper gluten free diet then my gut is fine and I think that means I should absorb stuff normally. Meh

 

[hopeandpray]

all that i can find is that it may hide a b12 deficiency but couldn't you just take extra b12 then just in case?

 

[Yatta89]

"Because folic acid needs the catalysts vitamins B12 and B6 to carry out its functions effectively it is usual to supplement with a combination of the three."

I found this on a health website. Basically it is saying that you need those other 2 vitamins in order for the FA to work. I would suggest just taking an OTC prenatal vitamin that has all this in it so you don't have to take 3 different pills.

 

[Celesse]

I take 5mg of Folic acid, which I believe is equivalent to 5000mcg.
Its a prescribed dose to go along side prescribed iron tablets and helped their absorption. I am finishing what I have left over from being pregnant in order to up my lvls rdy for TTC the next one.

 

[Yatta89]

You take 5mg a day!?!?! WOW Isn't that like WAAAY over the limit? Lol

 

[Celesse]

You take 5mg a day!?!?! WOW Isn't that like WAAAY over the limit? Lol

Its 1 tiny little tablet.

 

[w.axl.rose]

I too take 5mg of folic acid a day - its prescribed by my GP as i have an abnormal gene which means i dont absorb folic acid as well as most people.

 

[LucyluvsPoppy]

Sorry to jump across forums but this caught my eye. I was taking folic acid tablets, plus pregnacare which contains folic acid and then the midwife prescribed me NHS iron tablets for pregnancy that also contained folic acid!!!
Nothing bad has happened and the midwife was aware I was taking the other vitamins before prescribing me the additional iron + folic acid. x

 

[Yatta89]

Wow I Didn't even know you could take that much FA

 

[LucyluvsPoppy]

Dont know?? Im not taking the folic acid tablets anymore and after the prescribed iron tablets ran out I got iron tablets from Boots that dont contain folic acid but still, I was on 3 different tablets containing folic acid for the first 4 months of pregnancy and no harm done!! Before pregnancy I was just on normal folic acid tablets x

 

[Dinah]

Thanks everyone for your responses

I figure I'm not going to worry about it tbh. I'm not having the juice every single day and of course you get FA in like greens and fortified cereals etc and there are no warning labels. Also I found some info on a medical site which says your body just excretes (tmi!) any FA that it doesn't need without harm.

LucyluvsPoppy thanks for your response it was good to hear that a midwife knew about your levels (incl Pregnancare) and still prescribed more. Positive proof I feel that a few cups of juice aren't going to do me any harm

Cheers!
Dinah

 

[membas#1]

From what I understand you can't over do it on FA that is found in foods. For supplements it's not recommended to take more than 1000mg daily unless you are sure you are getting enough B12 (apparently if you are deficient in B12-which can cause nerve damage; too much FA will mask B12 deficiencies; but most folks of child bearing age do not run the risk of B12 deficiency, especially if you eat animal products like liver, eggs, chicken, dairy). I think I take around 900-1000mg/day as I take a 800mg FA pill plus 2-4 multivitamins which each have 50mg; and I eat a healthy diet of eggs, dairy, poultry and take liver pills.