Research links too much folic acid to certain cancers

[TZ]

Chances are, you started your day with a generous helping of folic acid. For more than a decade, the government has required enriched grains — most notably white flour and white rice — to be fortified with folic acid, the synthetic form of the B vitamin folate.

Many food manufacturers take it further, giving breakfast cereals, nutrition bars, and beverages a folic acid boost, too. The extra nutrient isn't meant for you, though — it's added to protect fetuses from developing rare but tragic birth defects. The fortification effort appears successful: Since 1998, the number of these birth defects dropped by about 19 percent. But for women past the years of having children, as well as for men of any age, unnatural dosages of this nutrient don't seem to be helpful — and may even be harmful.

Indeed, many scientists have grown increasingly concerned about mounting research — including a study published last winter in the Journal of the American Medical Association — suggesting that all the extra folic acid might increase your odds of developing cancer. "The more we learn about folic acid, the more it's clear that giving it to everyone has very real risks," says folic acid researcher David Smith, PhD, a professor of pharmacology at the University of Oxford in England.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35874922/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/
I've said this for years: everything in moderation. The people who recommend mega doses of vitamins for "good health" aren't doing anyone favors.

[get the red out]

1. Grateful

I'm grateful I have been buying cereal and bread with whole grains that isn't bulked up with "fortification" but just has the healthy stuff that occurs in nature. I think I will stick with that. Thanks for the information.

[corpseratemedia]

2. The April edition of Prevention magazine has an article on this

...there are some countries (the evil socialist ones) that ban fortification of food products. Those countries also have lower levels of prostrate, breast and colon cancer.

[hedgehog]

3. I wonder if the problem is an excess of Folic acid or an

imbalance between folic acid and Vitamin D.

[Hannahcares]

4. folic acid and MTHFR

some folks have a genetic mutation called MTHFR - they don't properly convert methionine to cysteine. They are at risk for homocysteine to build up in their blood, predisposing them to strokes,etc. There is a simple blood test available to see if you (or your kids) carry the MTHFR mutation. If so, the solution is to take extra folic acid each day (I believe 800 mcgs) As with so many nutirtional issues, if an individual has a specific condition, nutritional supplements can be life-saving. However large studies that don't "screen" for individual conditions may come to "generalized conclusions" that aren't valid for the entire population.

[HuckleB]

5. Kick (already recommended).