A Sign of Folic Acid Deficiency: Anemia

A deficiency of folic acid can lead to a type of anemia called, Pernicious Anemia. This anemia is characterized by having red blood cells that are impaired in their abilities to carry oxygen, which leads to a slow and chronic deprivation of oxygen to all of the cells of your body.

Signs of Pernicious Anemia are fatigue, gastrointestinal disorders(particularly diarrhea), and partial loss of coordination in the fingers, feet and limbs. There may be a loss of appetite, and the skin can have a pale or flushed look about it. In severe cases of anemia this can lead to eventual death.

Other symptoms of a folic acid deficiency include: mouth sores, metabolic changes, and increased chance of birth defects and problems with the mucosa membranes.

It is also possible to develop Pernicious Anemia if you have a deficiency of the vitamins, B12 and B7. In fact folic acid is so effective at treating anemia that if you take too much of it, it can mask the anemia caused by a deficiency of one of these other two vitamins. This can lead to severe damage as folic acid is not a replacement for these other two vitamins and is not treating the deficiency, simply the symptom of deficiency in the case of vitamins, B12 and B7. The dangers of masking these two vitamin deficiency are that the other symptoms will continue. Vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to fatigue and depression. Its also been linked to Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia and Vitamin B7. deficiency can lead to depression, brittle nails and skin disorders and muscle cramps.

Due to this danger of masking other vitamin deficiencies there has been an upper limit intake (UL) set for folic acid. This limit is one thousand mcg. daily of folic acid. A normal adult is recommended to take four hundred mcg. daily and a woman who could become pregnant, is pregnant or is lactating should take between six hundred and eight hundred mcg. daily of folic acid.

Because folic acid is effective at treating anemia it is sometimes prescribed by doctors to treat anemia symptoms caused by other conditions. Interestingly folic acid was first discovered because a Dr. Lucy Wills noted that a substance in Brewer’s Yeast appeared to correct the condition of anemia in pregnant women. This substance was folic acid.

The primary cause of a folic acid deficiency is poor diet, but currently governments in the U.S., Britain and other countries are requiring that foods be fortified with folic acid or folate as it is sometimes called. This fortification greatly reduces the chances that someone in these countries will develop a folic acid deficiency and the ensuing anemia. Foods that are fortified with folic acid are, breakfast cereals, some grain products and wheat flour.

Of course it is possible to get your RDA of folic acid from the foods that you eat. Such foods high in folic acid are green leafy veggies, wheat germ, peas and other legumes, and citrus.

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