A comparison of the effect of advice to eat either '5-a-day' fruit and vegetables or folic acid-fortified foods on plasma folate and homocysteine

Ashfield-Watt, Pauline Annie L., Whiting, J. M., Clark, Zoe E., Moat, Stuart James, Newcombe, Robert Gordon ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4400-8867, Burr, Michael Leslie and McDowell, Ian Frederick 2003. A comparison of the effect of advice to eat either '5-a-day' fruit and vegetables or folic acid-fortified foods on plasma folate and homocysteine. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 57 (2) , pp. 316-323. 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601545

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Abstract

Objective: To assess and compare the effects of natural folate (100 microg) with those of folic acid from fortified sources (100 microg/day) on plasma folate and homocysteine. Design: Randomized controlled trial (parallel groups). Setting: Men and women living in South Wales, UK. Subjects: A total of 135 healthy individuals recruited from the local workforce and blood donor sessions. All subjects possessed the 'wild-type' CC genotype for C677T polymorphism in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR). Interventions: Subjects underwent one of the following dietary interventions for 4 months: (1) fortified diet—usual diet plus 100 microg/day folic acid from fortified foods; (2) natural folate diet—usual diet plus 100 microg/day folate from natural sources; (3) control—usual diet. Results: The fortified group increased reported intake of folic acid from fortified foods compared to other groups (P<0.001) achieving an extra 98 microg/day (95% CI 88–108). The natural folate group increased reported intake of natural source folates compared with the other two groups (P<0.001), but achieved a mean increase of only 50 microg/day (95% CI 34–66). Plasma folate increased (P<0.01) by a similar amount in both intervention groups compared to controls (fortified group 2.97, 95% CI 0.8–5.1; natural group 2.76, 95% CI 0.6–4.9. Plasma homocysteine, vitamins B6 and B12 were not significantly changed. Conclusions: Subjects achieved increases in folate intake using fortified foods more easily than by folate-rich foods, however both sources increased plasma folate by a similar amount. These levels of intake were insufficient to reduce homocysteine concentrations in MTHFR CC homozygotes, but may be more effective in other genotypes. Sponsorship: This study was supported by the UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Foods (latterly UK, Food Standards Agency, Project Reference N05002). The Kellogg Company of Great Britain provided funding for reimbursement of subjects for the cost of fortified foods.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Medicine
Subjects:	R Medicine > R Medicine (General)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	natural folates; fortified foods; 5-a-day fruits and vegetables; plasma folate; plasma homocysteine
Publisher:	Nature Publishing Group
ISSN:	0954-3007
Last Modified:	25 Oct 2022 09:33
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/59051

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