Higher quality diet associated with reduced risk of some birth defects

Republicans want to cut back on WIC (Women, Infant, Children nutrition) programs to save money, but this could lead to higher costs in the future.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-10/jaaj-hqd093011.php

Public release date: 3-Oct-2011
Contact: Erin Digitale
JAMA and Archives Journals
Higher quality diet associated with reduced risk of some birth defects

CHICAGO -- Healthier dietary choices by pregnant women are associated with reduced risks of birth defects, including neural tube defects and orofacial clefts, according to a study published Online First by the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

The authors state in background information that folic acid supplementation and food fortification has been effective in preventing neural tube defects, but folic acid does not prevent all birth defects. "Nutrition research on birth defects has tended to focus on one nutrient (or nutritional factor) at a time," the authors write. "However, the reality of nutrition is much more complex."

[...]

..