Folic Acid Does Have Benefits, After All

It was only in March of this year that we summarized an analysis concluding that taking folic acid supplements was a waste of time. A new analysis of published studies, conducted by a British physician and reported in the British Medical Journal, concludes that raised homocysteine levels in the blood really are related to an increased incidence of heart attacks, and lowering them has a protective effect. Since folic acid lowers homocysteine levels, it’s clear that increasing folic acid consumption should reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

The evidence in favor of taking folic acid supplements is not strong, but the author argues that the practice is extremely safe, and the logic for doing so is strong. There’s no doubt the controversy will continue. The whole thing is complicate by the fact that bread in the USA, as in many countries, is fortified with folic acid (amongst other things), but this is not yet the case everywhere in the UK . Maybe this accounts for differing views on the two sides of the Atlantic ?