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Modifying Levels of Maternal Dietary Folic Acid or Choline to Study the Impact of Deficiencies on Offspring Health Outcomes
03:19

Modifying Levels of Maternal Dietary Folic Acid or Choline to Study the Impact of Deficiencies on Offspring Health Outcomes

Published on: June 28, 2024

Marginal folate inadequacy observed in a group of young children in Kwangju, Korea

Young-Nam Kim1, Ji-Young Lee, Judy A Driskell

  • 1Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0806, USA.

Nutrition Research and Practice
|June 11, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Young children in Korea may have inadequate folate status, with over half consuming less than recommended amounts. This highlights a potential public health concern for children's nutrition and development.

Area of Science:

  • Nutrition Science
  • Public Health
  • Pediatrics

Background:

  • Folate is essential for critical metabolic processes including nucleic acid synthesis and cell division.
  • Folate deficiency is linked to serious health issues like neural tube defects, dementia, and cardiovascular diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess folate intake and plasma concentrations in young children residing in Kwangju, Korea.
  • To identify potential risks associated with folate status in this pediatric population.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized three consecutive 24-hour food recalls to estimate dietary folate intake.
  • Collected fasting blood samples to measure plasma folate concentrations.
  • Included 54 children (24 boys, 30 girls) aged 2-6 years.

Main Results:

  • Mean daily folate intake was 146.7 +/- 73.6 microg DFE, with over half consuming below Korean Estimated Average Requirements.
  • Younger children (2-3 years) had significantly lower folate intake than older children (5-6 years).
  • Mean plasma folate was 19.2 +/- 8.7 nmol/L; 1.9% showed deficiency (<6.8 nmol/L) and 24% had marginal status (6.8-13.4 nmol/L).

Conclusions:

  • A significant proportion of young children in Korea may not meet adequate folate intake levels.
  • While overt deficiency was low, marginal folate status was observed in nearly a quarter of participants.
  • Findings suggest a need for monitoring and potential interventions to improve folate status in Korean children.

Keywords:
FolateKoreachildrenfortificationplasma folate

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