Folate vs Folic Acid: What You Need to Know
If you’re planning a pregnancy or currently pregnant, you’ve probably heard from your doctor about the importance of folic acid during pregnancy. But while the vital importance of this nutrient to fetal development is indisputable, there’s something even more important that your doctor may not be telling you. This has to do with the difference between folic acid and folate. Read on to learn more about why you need to pay attention to this during your pregnancy journey, the difference between folic acid and folate, why you want folate during pregnancy and not folic acid, and how to make sure you’re getting enough folate for a healthy and nourishing pregnancy.
What is Folic Acid? What is Folate? And What’s the Difference?
Folic acid is a B vitamin, also known as B9. It gets its name from the Latin word folium, which means “foliage”, because folic acid is found in leafy greens such as spinach and kale.
Folate is essentially the same thing as folic acid, with one key but super important difference: folate is the natural form of the nutrient, whereas folic acid is the synthetic form. Folate is found naturally in food; folic acid is manufactured in a lab or factory. Your body can easily absorb, use, and store folate. Folic acid needs to be converted to folate in the body before it can be absorbed, used, and stored. So as they say in Thailand, same same but different.
Why is Folic Acid Important During Pregnancy?
Folic acid, or folate, is an important nutrient in general. It plays various functions and roles in the body, including a fundamental role in the growth and development of all cells. During pregnancy, since your body is growing and reproducing all of those fetal cells, folic acid is even more important. Deficiency in folic acid during pregnancy has been linked to fetal growth and development issues. Since folic acid is particularly critical in baby’s nervous system development, a lot of attention has been given to the link between folic acid deficiency and increased risk of neural tube defects (e.g. spina bifida), which can lead to an underdeveloped brain and malformation of the skull or spine. So, having enough folic acid in your system is important for the proper development of your baby.
Folate or Folic Acid During Pregnancy?
If you’re on your pregnancy journey, you’re very likely aware of the importance of folic acid during pregnancy. But there may be a key piece of information you’re missing: when it comes to folic acid vs folate, you actually want folate, not folic acid.
As mentioned above, folic acid is the synthetic form of folate, and as such, the body needs to convert it to folate before it can be absorbed, used, and stored. While in theory the idea is to take folic acid and then let the body do its conversion thing, this may be problematic for two reasons.
First, a lot of nutrient gets lost in the conversion process. So if your prenatal supplement contains 600mcg of folic acid (the RDA for folic acid during pregnancy), the amount that is actually useable for your body is significantly less than that.
Second, it is estimated that 50% or more of the population has a genetic mutation that interferes with the conversion of folic acid to folate in the body. If you have this mutation, or if you haven’t been tested, it is possible that your body is doing very little with the folic acid you’re getting from your supplement.
Want to know more about MTHFR mutation and its impact during pregnancy? Read my blog post on MTHFR and pregnancy.
You may be wondering why many prenatal supplements contain folic acid if folate is the better choice. The answer is simple: folic acid is a much cheaper option. Which means that companies can charge less for their supplements, so consumers buy more, generating more profit for them.
How to Get Folate During Pregnancy
Folate From Food
In my holistic nutrition consultations, I always recommend food as the first source of folate during pregnancy. This is because folate is a rather delicate nutrient: while it’s readily available in food, it is easily destroyed by light, heat, processing, and even storage. So the best way to get folate is from fresh food.
There are a variety of food sources of folate, beyond the leafy greens that the nutrient gets it name from. My favourites include:
Spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts
Asparagus, okra, parsnip
Avocado, banana
Liver (beef or chicken)
Eggs
Chickpeas, lentils, and other legumes
If food is your primary source of folate, you’ll want to aim for at least 600mcg per day. You can maximize your folate intake by eating your folate foods raw or lightly steamed, and by purchasing your produce from local sources so they’re as fresh as possible.
Folate From Supplements
This is where things get slightly complicated.
When choosing a supplement, you don’t actually want straight up folate but rather methylated folate (want to know why? Find out here).
And to make things more complicated, there are actually a few different types of methylated folate. Let’s break them down quickly:
The “L” group: these are forms that start with the letter L. They contain the primary form of folate in circulation in your body, and are therefore well-absorbed. These ones are great. Examples include: L-methylfolate, L-5-MTHF, L-5-methyltetrahydrofolate, 6(S)-L-MTHF, 6(S)-L-methyltetrahydrofolate
The “D” group: although methylated, these forms of folate are not biologically active, so if you have the MTHFR mutation, your body might not be able to metabolize this form. I recommend not choosing these. Examples include: D-5-MTHF, D-5-methyltetrahydrofolate, 6(R)-L-MTHF, 6(R)-L-methyltetrahydrofolate
The non-specified group: These are forms of folate that don’t indicate if they are the “L” form or the “D” form. Which means that they likely contain both, in unknown ratios. I recommend avoiding these unless you’re willing to check with the manufacturer to confirm that they are pure “L” form and not a mix of the two forms. Examples of these include 5-MTHF, 5-methylfolate, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate
TLDR: choose a folate supplement in a form that starts with “L”.
A Final Word on Folate During Pregnancy
In this post, we’ve talked about the importance of folate/folic acid during pregnancy. But in fact, sufficient folate intake is vital even before pregnancy. This is because the first 10 weeks of pregnancy are known as the period of critical development for the embryo. By 10 weeks, baby’s vital organs have already formed and are starting to function. Since folate is essential for the formation of these organs (due to its key role in cell development and reproduction), it is extremely important that you have enough folate in your system to support this. Which means that it is important to start filling those folate stores even before pregnancy, and to prioritize this during the early first trimester.
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