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Folic AcidPage 1 of 4
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Folate: What is it?Folate is a water-soluble B vitamin that occurs naturally in food.
Folic acid is the
synthetic form of folate that is found in supplements and
added to fortified foods.
Folate gets its name from the Latin word "folium" for leaf. A key observation of researcher Lucy Wills nearly 70 years ago led to the identification
of folate as the nutrient needed to prevent the anemia of pregnancy. Dr. Wills demonstrated that the anemia could be corrected by a yeast extract.
Folate was identified as the corrective substance in yeast extract in the late 1930s, and was extracted from spinach leaves in 1941.
Folate
helps produce and maintain new cells. This is especially important during periods of rapid cell
division and growth such as infancy and pregnancy. Folate is needed to make
DNA and RNA, the building blocks of cells. It also helps prevent changes
to DNA that may lead to cancer. Both adults and children need
folate
to make normal red blood cells
and prevent anemia. Folate
is also essential for the metabolism of homocysteine, and helps maintain
normal levels of this amino acid.
What foods provide folate
?Leafy green vegetables (like spinach
and turnip greens), fruits (like citrus fruits and juices), and dried beans and peas are all natural sources of
folate
.
In 1996, the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published regulations requiring the addition of folic acid to enriched breads, cereals, flours, corn meals, pastas,
rice, and other grain products. Since cereals and grains are widely consumed in the U.S., these products have become a very important contributor of folic acid to the
American diet. The following table suggests a variety of dietary sources of
folate.
Table 1: Selected Food Sources of
Folate
and Folic Acid
| Food | Micrograms | % DV^ |
|---|
| *Breakfast
cereals fortified with 100% of the DV, 1 cup |
400 |
100 |
| Beef liver,
cooked, braised, 3 ounces |
185 |
45 |
| Cowpeas (blackeyes), immature,
cooked, boiled, 1 cup |
105 |
25 |
| *Breakfast cereals, fortified
with 25% of the DV, 1 cup |
100 |
25 |
| Spinach, frozen, cooked,
boiled, 1 cup |
100 |
25 |
| Great Northern beans, boiled,
1 cup |
90 |
20 |
| Asparagus, boiled, 4 spears |
85 |
20 |
| *Rice, white, long-grain, parboiled, enriched, cooked, 1 cup |
65 |
15 |
| Vegetarian baked beans, canned, 1 cup |
60 |
15 |
| Spinach, raw, 1 cup |
60 |
15 |
| Green peas, frozen, boiled, 1 cup |
50 |
15 |
| Broccoli, chopped, frozen, cooked, 1 cup |
50 |
15 |
| *Egg noodles, cooked, enriched, 1 cup |
50 |
15 |
| Broccoli, raw, 2 spears (each 5 inches long) |
45 |
10 |
| Avocado, raw, all varieties, sliced, 1 cup sliced |
45 |
10 |
| Peanuts, all types, dry roasted, 1 ounce |
40 |
10 |
| Lettuce, Romaine, shredded, 1 cup |
40 |
10 |
| Wheat germ, crude, 2 Tablespoons |
40 |
10 |
| Tomato Juice, canned, 6 ounces |
35 |
10 |
| Orange juice, chilled, includes concentrate, 1 cup |
35 |
10 |
| Turnip greens, frozen, cooked, boiled, 1 cup |
30 |
8 |
| Orange, all commercial varieties, fresh, 1 small |
30 |
8 |
| *Bread, white, 1 slice |
25 |
6 |
| *Bread, whole wheat, 1 slice |
25 |
6 |
| Egg, whole, raw, fresh, 1 large |
25 |
6 |
| Cantaloupe, raw, 1 medium |
25 |
6 |
| Papaya, raw, 1 cup cubes |
25 |
6 |
| Banana, raw, 1 medium |
20 |
6 |
* Items marked with an asterisk (*) are fortified with folic acid as part of the
Folate
Fortification Program.
^ DV = Daily Value. DVs
are reference numbers developed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help consumers determine if a food contains a lot or a little of a
specific nutrient. The DV for folate is 400 micrograms.
Most food labels do not list a food's magnesium content. The percent DV (%DV)
listed on the table indicates the percentage of the DV provided in one serving. A food providing 5% of the DV or less is a low source while a
food that provides 10-19% of the DV is a good source. A food that provides 20% or more of the DV is high in that nutrient. It is important
to remember that foods that provide lower percentages of the DV also contribute to a healthful diet. For foods not listed in this table,
please refer to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Nutrient Database Web site:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/nut_search.pl.
What are the Dietary Reference Intakes for
folate
?
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