Is It Best to Take Folic Acid or Folate During Pregnancy?

While the topic of methylfolate versus folic acid supplementation during pregnancy has been trending online, experts recommend taking folic acid as it is the only studied and proven supplement known to lower the risk of neural tube defects in a developing baby. Part of the reason that folic acid is the standard of care for pregnant women is that studying other types of supplementation, such as methylfolate supplementation, would be challenging, and could create ethical concerns, explained Amber Samuel, M.D., a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and medical director at Obstetrix® Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialists of Houston, part of Pediatrix® Medical Group. "As folic acid is the standard of care, assessing whether alternate supplementation is advisable would involve asking a group of patients to not take a known vital supplement and possibly risk fetal abnormalities, which would be a difficult task to accomplish," explained Dr. Samuel.

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