When you’re pregnant, you no doubt have a lot on your mind. Most importantly, you have to remain healthy to make sure that your child is as healthy as possible. Eating right, avoiding certain substances, and knowing the right substances to ingest is key to your child being healthy inside the womb and outside the womb. The team here at our center for IVF in New Jersey wants to go over one important substance that can help enhance the health of your child: folic acid.

You’re probably familiar with the phrase folic acid, but you may not be sure what it means exactly. This is okay since many people are in the same boat. Basically, folic acid is a kind of B vitamin that is essential for various body functions, including cell growth and cell division.

Folic acid is something that women should ingest before pregnancy and during pregnancy. There are a few compelling reasons for this. Perhaps most importantly, taking folic acid before and during pregnancy will help reduce the chance of your baby developing certain birth defects. This is particularly true with neural tube defects such as spinal bifida or anencephaly. Folic acid will ensure the health of the neural tube in your baby as he or she develops. (This neural tube will eventually become the brain and spinal cord of your child.) This will reduce the chances of both spinal bifida and anencephaly from occurring.

There are other birth defects that folic acid may reduce the occurrence of, such as cleft lips or cleft palates or low birth weight. Some studies also suggest that taking folic acid can also reduce the chances of miscarriage, premature birth, and other complications that a woman may experience in the second and third trimesters.

To learn more about your health during pregnancy as well as other fertility topics (such as New Jersey ICSI and IVF), be sure to contact our IVF center in New Jersey. We look forward to discussing these issues with you in greater detail.