The Netherlands has been told that it must allow the marketing of
foods with added vitamins and minerals without requiring
manufacturers to prove that there is a 'nutritional' need for such
products.
Combining B vitamins with a powerful antioxidant could lower blood
levels of the amino acid homocysteine enough to prevent dementia,
claims a UK research firm preparing to test the theory in clinical
trials.
Folate, the B vitamin required by women to prevent birth defects in
their babies, also appears to reduce the risk of them developing
high blood pressure, shows new research.
A recent study in Canada has given weight to the assumption that
adding folic acid to food can dramatically reduce the incidence of
birth defects - suggesting that Europe should follow the example
set by North America and start to...
Mothers with low levels of vitamin B12 in their blood may be at
increased risk of having a child with the birth defect spina
bifida, Dutch researchers report.
Japanese pharmaceutical firm Takeda will sell off its stakes in
five non-core joint ventures, including the vitamins business that
it operates with Germany's BASF, according to reports.
The trace mineral selenium should be considered as a potential
factor to lower one of the markers of heart disease, homocysteine,
say Spanish researchers.
Researchers in the New England Journal of Medicine have found that
supplements of vitamin B, previously thought to help keep arteries
clear after a coronary stent was inserted, actually do the
opposite.
Expecting mothers with a diet lacking in plant proteins, iron,
magnesium, and niacin may be up to five times more likely to have a
baby with spina bifida, suggests a new study from the Netherlands.
Multivitamins containing folic acid appear to be more effective at
preventing neural tube defects than high dose folic acid
supplements, suggests a new review, attempting to resolve the
debate over how women should consume the essential...
Thirteen popular multivitamin products failed a ConsumerLab test
because of lead contamination, lower ingredient levels than stated,
and/or inability to fully break apart for absorption, writes Wai
Lang Chu.
Only about 25 per cent of women in many countries voluntarily take
folic acid tablets before conception, say Australian researchers,
despite evidence to show that adequate levels of the nutrient could
halve the risk of neural tube...
Folic acid - the B vitamin found commonly in supplements and
increasingly in a wide range of bread products - is already known
to prevent severe birth defects and to lower risk of death from
heart disease. But it could also help to...
Breakfast cereals fortified with folic acid and other B vitamins
could help consumers protect against heart disease by lowering
levels of homocysteine, suggests new research.
Black women may need to increase their folic acid intake, as a new
report shows that higher levels of the amino acid homocysteine and
less folic acid than white women could be increasing their risk of
preeclampsia during pregnancy.
Evidence continues to mount suggesting a link between various
stages of depression and low blood levels of the B vitamin folate,
according to research funded by the Agricultural Research Service
in the US.
Evidence continues to mount suggesting a link between various
stages of depression and low blood levels of the B vitamin folate,
according to research funded by the Agricultural Research Service
in the US.
Low levels of vitamin B12 are associated with poorer memory in
older people with high risk for Alzheimer's, according to a large
Swedish study, thought to be one of the first to examine how the
relationship between diet and genes...
A high dietary folate intake may play a role in reducing the risk
of ovarian cancer, especially among women who consume alcohol,
report Swedish researchers.
Fortifying enriched grain products with folic acid in the 1990s
appears to have been followed by a decline in stroke and ischemic
heart disease deaths, US government researchers reported at an
American Heart Association conference...
Mineral water fortified with folic acid and a handful of vitamins
can reduce plasma homocysteine levels, a risk factor in
cardiovascular disease, report Finnish researchers this month. In a
separate study on mineral water German researchers...
Danish ingredients company Danisco has received GRAS status for its
betaine product used in heart-healthy supplements, opening up new
market opportunities for the methyl donor and osmolyte.
Taking high-dose vitamins to reduce levels of the amino acid
homocysteine, thought to reduce heart disease risk, appears to do
little to prevent a second stroke in patients, show results out
today from a major international trial.
Men with a high intake of folic acid are at significantly lower
risk of stroke, finds new research confirming previous studies. The
researchers say there could be enough evidence to support advice
encouraging men to increase their...
A major international trial to investigate whether supplements of B
vitamins can protect people from a second stroke received funding
from the UK this month, one of the 14 countries to participate.
Australia's TGA, soon to be given new powers to regulate dietary
supplements after a recent government report, last week ordered a
recall of Vital brand Vitamin B complex capsules, after the
manufacturer alerted it to problems...
Fortification of wheat flour with folic acid has substantially
improved folate status in a population of women of reproductive age
in Chile, report researchers in this month's Journal of
Nutrition.
South African millers must fortify flour and maize meal with a
blend of vitamins and minerals, including folic acid, following new
legislation introduced this week to improve malnutrition in the
country.
Elderly people should consider taking supplements of B vitamins as
many are deficient in the nutrients, thought to protect against
heart disease, argue German researchers in a new study.
Low-fat spreads are an effective vehicle for supplementing the diet
with folic acid, according to a new study in the European
Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Folic acid food fortification has more than halved the incidence in
Canada of the deadly childhood cancer neuroblastoma, report
researchers from The Hospital for Sick Children and the University
of Toronto. They plan to investigate...
Elderly people could gain some protection against cognitive decline
by taking B vitamins to reduce levels of homocysteine, after
researchers find the amino acid is a modest predictor of mental
performance.
Biacore International has had its food analysis kit, used for the
rapid routine testing of the vitamin food supplement folic acid,
fully validated and certified as a Performance Tested Method by the
Association of Analytical Communities...
Poor absorption of folic acid is compounding a low intake among
people in the Netherlands, suggest researchers, who advise that a
more bioavailable form of the B vitamin be included in foods.
Fortifying foods with folic acid may not reduce the incidence of
Down's syndrome, say University of Toronto researchers, although
they suggest we may to need to wait for the next generation of
women to give birth before the their...
A Swiss lobby group is stepping up pressure on the Government to
introduce mandatory folic acid fortification of flour, according to
a newspaper report.
Taking folate supplements may help suppress depression suggests a
new study, which found that problems metabolizing the B vitamin may
be causing increased incidence of the condition.
There is still insufficient evidence to determine whether vitamins
A, C and E or multivitamins can reduce the risk for cardiovascular
disease or cancer, concludes a report by researchers in the US,
revealing the gaps which should...
A single pill made up of different drugs and folic acid could
reduce heart attacks and strokes by more than 80 per cent, suggest
researchers in this week's British Medical Journal.
Folic acid, found to lower plasma homocysteine levels, did not
prevent heart attacks and strokes in heart disease patients
receiving supplements of the vitamin, report researchers in the
Netherlands.
The World Health Organisation has set up an international
organisation which aims to reduce the crippling effects of poor
health around the world through fortifying foods with essential
nutrients like vitamin A and iron.
A combination of daily followed by weekly iron supplementation
appears to be the answer for treating severe anaemia in babies in
the developing world, according to a new French - Vietnamese study.
Scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research report a possible
link between levels of folic acid available to the baby in the womb
and leukaemia in children.
An adequate intake of folic acid during pregnancy, believed to
protect against neural tube defects (NTDs) in babies, may also help
prevent Down's syndrome, researchers report in The Lancet
this week.
UK bakers Warburtons is targeting pregnant women with the launch of
its 'Good Health Loaf for Women' fortified with various vitamins
and omega-3 DHA, as part of its Good Health range.
