Medical professionals recommend that the women should take a folic acid supplement along with the normal diet before and during the pregnancy. If the guidelines are followed, it is less likely to have babies with birth defects. However in spite of these medical revelations, only one among the women belonging to the age group of 18-24 includes these supplements in her diet. This age group is the most productive among the women in the United States.

Though folic acid is required by everyone, it is especially important for the young women of child bearing age as it can prevent the birth of a baby with serious defects in the brain and spine. Heather Hamner, a nutritional epidemiologist for the CDC’s ‘National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities Prevention Research Team’ has carried out studies to prove this. It is especially useful if taken before the pregnancy and during the first trimester of the pregnancy. In fact it is highly recommended that women of child bearing age should include folic acid in their diet.

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