"It's very important to get enough folic acid in your body before and during pregnancy," says an LSU AgCenter food and nutrition expert, "because the vitamin is critical to the baby's spine and brain development during the first month, before many women know they are pregnant."

Getting enough folic acid in the body before the pregnancy and during the first trimester can prevent up to 70 percent of serious birth defects, such as spina bifida and anencephaly.

Extension nutritionist Dr. Heli Roy explains that spina bifida occurs when the spinal cord and back bones do not develop properly. That can cause paralysis of the lower body, no control of bowel and bladder and learning disabilities. Some 80 percent to 90 percent of children born with spina bifida live.

Anencephaly is a fatal condition in which the brain is totally absent. Those babies who are born alive die within a few days.

The nutritionist describes folic acid (folate) as a B vitamin that can be found in some fruits and vegetables, some enriched foods (breakfast cereals, grain products) and vitamin pills.

She says good food sources of folic acid include beans, peas, green vegetables (spinach, collards, mustard), broccoli, cauliflower, corn, sweet potato, strawberries, oranges, banana, cantaloupe and kiwi.

It is recommneded that all women who could become pregnant get 400 micrograms, or 0.4 mg of folic acid daily. Roy says you can get this amount in two ways. First, eat a healthy diet that contains a lot of fruits and vegetables and foods fortified with folic acid.

Grain products such as bread, pasta, rice, flour and cereal have been fortified with certain amounts of folic acid. Check the label on your breakfast cereals. Some cereals have 100 percent of the daily requirement.

The second way to consume folic acid is by taking a vitamin pill with folic acid in it. Most multivitamins pills contain all the folic acid you need. You also can buy vitamins made only with folic acid.

"A well-balanced diet, with lots of fruits and vegetables, is very important," the nutritionist stresses, adding that you can get your folic acid from foods alone, but it takes careful planning to make sure you get enough every day.

For most women it is easier to take a folic acid pill every day - they are small and easy to swallow. Also, multivitamins, fortified breakfast cereals and enriched grain products contain a synthetic form of folic acid, which is more easily absorbed by the body than the natural form.

"It is not yet known if 400 micrograms of folic acid from foods provide the same protection against birth defects as 400 micrograms of the synthetic form," Roy points out. "This is because cooking and storage can destroy some of the folate in foods, while the body can absorb almost 100 percent of the synthetic form."

She says this is why the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the Institute of Medicine recommend that 400 micrograms of synthetic folic acid should be taken daily by all women who could become pregnant.

"Because unplanned pregnancies happen," Roy cautions, "prospective moms need to make sure they get enough folic acid every day, even if they're not planning a baby until next month, or even next year."

Getting enough takes a small effort, she says, but it makes a big difference. "Start taking care of your baby now, even before you're pregnant."

For additional information about nutrition, contact an extension agent in your parish LSU AgCenter office.