Defects blamed on folic acid loss
Dublin City University (DCU) researchers have found breads, cereals, fruit juices, spreads, and yogurts are among the products less likely to contain added folic acid resulting in birth defects such as spina bifida.
Researchers found the increasing preference of Irish consumers for discount retailers, which stock few products fortified with folic acid, may also be contributing to the rise in children born with neural tube defects.
Ireland used to have more widespread voluntary fortification than other European countries, and the rate of birth defects fell up to 2008.
However, the rate started rising again in 2009, with some researchers suggesting economic hardship caused by the recession had affected the quality of food bought by low-income families.
DCU researcher Frances Kelly said the voluntary system for fortifying foods left it up to consumers to track their consumption by checking food labels.
“The impact on women of reproductive age who do not actively take folic acid supplementation before and during the early stages of pregnancy is potentially immense in terms of birth outcomes,” said Ms Kelly.
DCU researchers also audited the folic acid content of common foodstuffs in 2004, 2008 and 2014. The proportion of breads fortified fell from 17% in 2004 to 2% last year; the figure for fruit juices fell from 67% to 24%; spreads fell from 50% to 13%.
There were also large differences in the number of fortified products in different supermarket chains. The study found only a “minimal selection” of such products in discount stores; two in Lidl and 17 in Aldi. This compares to more than 100 in other supermarket chains.
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