Are you Folic Acid Deficient?

Until recently, the role of Folic acid in the prevention of diseases had been ignored. Even the most obsessed health food enthusiast knew nothing about the importance of a Folic acid rich diet. That was until research eventually unearthed the myriad ways in which Folic acid affects health and wellness. In the light of evidence that this B vitamin has the ability to prevent heart disease, cancer and strokes, the emphasis on consumption of Folic acid through your daily diet and through dietary supplements have increased considerably.

If you have not yet undergone a Folic acid test and verified that you have enough Folate in your system, these are the signs to watch out for...

Fatigue: The very first sign of a deficiency of Folic acid is high fatigue. If you feel tired and worn out throughout the day, a Folic acid deficiency could be the culprit. Before you decide on your pick from the diverse array of usual causes that fatigue is associated with, it might be a good idea to get your Folic acid levels checked.

Shortness of breath: Not many other health issues herald themselves by making you short of breath, making this symptom a particularly positive identification of Folic acid deficiency.

Red and sore tongue: Another characteristic symptom. If you have a sore tongue, it would be rather irrational to wait it out a day or two. Get yourselves some Folic acid supplements or modify your diet to that effect.

Reduced sense of taste: If you suspect that your sense of taste has declined and have already found a low-risk reason to blame it on and ignore, this would a nice time to check if you are putting yourself at risk of Folic acid deficiency and all the health issues that come with it.

Weight loss: Unless you are one of those weight watching diet junkies who celebrate every pound that leaves your body, you would understand the simple fact that unexplained and unwarranted loss of weight signals an impending health issue and Folic acid deficiency is one of them.

Diarrhea: After having affected the tongue by making it sore and reducing the sense of taste, effectively rendering the consumption of food a painful affair, Folic acid deficiency goes a step further by making it tough to keep the food in with diarrhea.

If you are on the watch out for these tell tale signs and you commit yourself to getting a Folic acid test done when you suspect that you are in the red, there is not much to fear here. After all, Folic acid deficiency can be easily corrected by supplementing your diet with Folic acid pills or foods rich in this B vitamin.

Pregnancy

Importance of Folic acid during pregnancy cannot be ignored at any cost. Folic acid deficiency during pregnancy is known to lead to neural tube defects which are essentially birth defects related to the brain and the spinal chord in the baby. The levels of Folic acid in the body of women who are planning to conceive should be kept optimal till the first few weeks of pregnancy to prevent this from happening.

A simple and quick prenatal test would tell you if you are deficient in Folic acid. The Folic acid test cannot wait until you conceive and realize it since it would be far too late and you would have already endangered your baby. Prenatal testing is too easy, quick and important to be ignored.