title: Periconceptional folic acid supplementation in a nationally representative sample of mothers.
abstract: This study reports recent trends in periconceptional folic acid use in Ireland using archived data from Growing Up in Ireland--the National Longitudinal Study of Children. Of a sample of 10,891 mothers, 6,936 (64%) reported taking folic acid before conception and 10,157 (93%) reported taking folic acid during the first trimester of pregnancy. Younger (OR = 0.38, 95% CI = 0.29-0.50), lower income (OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.51-0.68), lower educated (OR = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.66-0.89), and single mothers (OR = 0.46, 95% Cl = 0.40-0.52) were less likely to have taken folic acid pre-conception. A similar pattern was found post-conception with younger (OR = 0.58, 95% Cl = 0.40-0.84), lower income (OR = 0.40, 95% Cl = 0.30-0.53), lower educated (OR = 0.50, 95% Cl = 0.38-0.66), and single mothers (OR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.60-0.91) less likely to have taken folic acid post-conception. The findings highlight an ongoing need for targeted promotional campaigns to increase supplementation rates among younger and socially disadvantaged mothers.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Trinity College, College Green, Dublin 2. mcnalls1@tcd.ie
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McNally
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bourke
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D019587:Dietary Supplements / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D007494:Ireland; D016742:Preconception Care / Q000639:trends*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid