The FAA Report

FAA Executive summary

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Contents:

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Overview

Issues

Call to action

Appendices:

Biographies

IPSOS survey

References

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The FAA Report

FAA Executive summary

Issues on information provision and uptake of folic acid amongst women of child-bearing age

Folic Acid Action identified the following current issues that need to be addressed:

Some 50 per cent of pregnancies are unplanned and women do not realise they are pregnant until after the time where folic acid will be of most benefit. Targeting this multi-faceted audience will require considerable funding for campaigning over many years and is competing with a number of other health promotion issues, such as the flu vaccination.

Even a healthy diet of five fruit and vegetables per day provides insufficient daily amounts of folic acid;1,2 12 cups of spinach are required per day to meet the recommended amount. Supplementation is essential for all women who are ovulating and sexually active (including those women taking the contraceptive pill which reduces the levels of folic acid in the body). For lower socio-economic groups this may have a considerable impact in terms of cost and thus motivation to uptake.

NTDs are currently not seen as being as serious a health issue as sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies, however, they are a priority and their status should be raised in government.

Many healthcare professionals do not discuss folic acid supplementation with nonpregnant patients. Key opportunities to educate women are being missed. Education on folic acid needs to become habitual with all women of child-bearing age.

There is no ownership amongst the healthcare professional team of the folic acid mantra, and as such the message is not being disseminated as frequently and as widely as is needed.

School nurses do not incorporate information on the role of folic acid and the optimal time to take it as part of sex/family planning education.

Current National Institute on Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines recommend that the first antenatal appointment needs to be between 8 and 12 weeks. This is too late to start educating pregnant women on the need to take folic acid supplementation.

There is no government health promotion initiative to widely disseminate clear and consistent messages on the importance of folic acid for all women of child-bearing age. As a result, there is little interest by the mass media on the role of folic acid.