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.od.nih.gov/”TARGET=”_blank”>photo)
Take your vitamin. Have we heard that a lot during our childhood. We are still bombarded with this topic by advertisments on tv or website.

Well, folic acid is a vitamin. It is the vitamin B9 or folate. Its scientific name is pteroylglutamic acid, but rarely hear it that way. It help to maintain and repair DNA and is important in creating new cells like blood cells. Deficiency in B9 is responsible of birth defect call spina bifida.

Pregnant women are strongly recommended by their doctor to supplement their diet with extra foliate.

Important for cancer

Low level of folic acid in blood was linked with colorectal cancer. The fact of consuming large amount of vitamin B9 to protect us from cancer is not clear. However it was found to interfere with the effectiveness of some chemotherapy drugs.

It is naturally found in dark leafy green vegetable like spinach, citrus fruits and liver. But it is also found in fortified cereal, flour, pasta and bread since 1998 in the United states.

So deficiency of this vitamin will be very uncommon in the future. There are results that folic acid intake attenuate the alcohol risk of cancer in breast cancer. But at this time, it is hard to identify each nutrient or there combination on personal cancer risk.

The American Cancer society recommends eating a variety of healthy food rather than taking supplements to fight cancer.

Bottom line

Folic acid is necessary for life and an healthy diet recommended by health care should provide plenty of vitamin B9.
Follow your doctor’s recommendation and avoid delaying conventional medical care.
Eat your 5 to 10 fruits and vegetables a day.
Exercise at least 30 min daily.