March of Dimes Heads National Task Force on Folic Acid Education

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WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Aug. 27 -- To coordinate efforts to get more American women to consume the B vitamin folic acid every day and reduce the number of serious birth defects in their babies, 15 of the country's leading organizations concerned about maternal and infant health have formed a national task force under the leadership of the March of Dimes.

"Up to 70 percent of neural tube defects, which affect the brain and spine, can be prevented by consuming an adequate amount of folic acid daily, but not enough women of childbearing age are getting the message," said Christopher P. Howson, Ph.D., director of international programs and science officer of the March of Dimes. "A coordinated national approach to folic acid education is an important step for our organizations to take in order to achieve optimal prevention of these common and disabling birth defects."

The National Folic Acid Task Force, which originally was convened by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will promote the sharing of information and development of collaborative programs among the members, establish consistent health messages, prevent duplication of efforts, and develop new ideas for folic acid education. Dr. Howson said the National Task Force already has initiated a series of actions, including:

1. The March of Dimes will launch a new comprehensive, multi-year public health education campaign on folic acid planned for October. The March of Dimes, which has been conducting folic acid education programs since 1994, has committed up to $10 million to this project.
2. CDC will release a national public health campaign on folic acid planned for January 1999. CDC will host a national conference in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 28-29 to kick off the Task Force's national campaign on folic acid and to train state and local campaign leaders. CDC will provide national materials such as public service ads and brochures that can be used or modified for state and local campaigns.
3. The Spina Bifida Association of America (SBAA), on behalf of itself and other groups, is filing a citizens petition with the Food and Drug Administration, asking FDA to increase its level of required fortification of enriched cereal grains with folic acid to a level of 350ug/100gm of cereal from the current level of 140ug/100gm.
4. The Association of Women's Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) is actively involved in providing information on the importance of folic acid supplementation as part of routine pre- conception counseling to its nurse members.

Neural tube defects (NTDs) are among the most serious and common birth defects in the United States. Each year, an estimated 2,500 babies are born with these defects, and many additional affected pregnancies result in miscarriage or stillbirth. The most common NTD is spina bifida, a leading cause of childhood paralysis. Another NTD is anencephaly, a fatal condition in which a baby is born with a severely underdeveloped brain and skull.

To help prevent NTDs, all women capable of having a baby should consume 400 micrograms of folic acid every day, beginning before pregnancy, from good sources including a daily multivitamin supplement, enriched grain products (such as bread and pasta), and fortified breakfast cereals. Women should also consume a balanced diet containing foods that are naturally high in folic acid, such as leafy green vegetables, orange juice, and beans.

Organizations participating in the National Task Force on Folic Acid are the: American Academy of Family Physicians; American Academy of Pediatrics; American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; American College of Physicians; American Nurses Association; American Pharmaceutical Association; Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs; Association of State and Territorial Public Health Nutrition Directors; AWHONN; CDC; Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition; National Coalition of Hispanic Health and Human Services Organizations; Shriner's Hospitals for Children; SBAA; and the March of Dimes.

The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality. The March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy. For more information, visit the March of Dimes Home Page on the World Wide Web at www.modimes.org. In 1998, the March of Dimes celebrates its 60th anniversary, marking six decades of lifesaving breakthroughs for babies.

Web site: http://www.modimes.org

CONTACT: Michele Kling, 914-997-4613, Rosalind D'Eugenio, 914-997-4608, or Michael Jefferson, 914-997-4622, all of the March of Dimes