Care providers recommend folic acid to all women who want to conceive. At the same time, unmetabolized synthetic folic acid is associated with cancer, depression and cognitive impairment1. What gives?
Folic acid is one of the most controversial prenatal supplements. There are two main schools of thought. Since this topic wraps around to circadian rhythms and the light/dark cycle, I wanted to share it with you.
Here are two ways to think about folic acid supplementation:
Populations focus. In past studies, folic acid supplementation reduced rates of neural tube defects. (And other issues such as autism, depression, cancers, and dementia).
Individuals focus. Between individuals, folic acid metabolism can vary. For some, it can be like throwing gasoline on a grease fire of inflammation (look up homocysteine if interested in why).
This divergence in thinking is causing the conflicting advice about folic acid supplementation.
In today's post, I thought I'd dig into the circadian health aspects …
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