Sir, – We welcome the letter by Dr Mary Henry(May 10th) and her focus for many years on the issue of prevention of neural tube defects.
It has been clearly established since the early 1990s that an adequate red blood cell folate level in pregnant women around the time of conception can reduce by 70 per cent the risk of having a baby with these serious birth defects. Recent evidence also suggests that the rate of incidence of these conditions may be increasing again in Ireland after a period of slight reduction.
In the medium to long-term, the fortification of a food such as bread or an ingredient such as flour may be possible on a mandatory basis pending legislation. However, this is not available as an immediate measure.
In the interim, the immediate and internationally recommended public health response is a recurring awareness and information campaign focusing on the need for all women who may become pregnant to take a folic acid supplement of 400 micrograms orally once a day to reduce their risk of having a baby with a neural tube defect and by using communication methods aimed specifically at the target audience. Safefood, in collaboration with the Department of Health and the HSE, ran a folic acid awareness campaign in July and August 2015 and this will run again in June and July.
The campaign, “Babies Know the Facts about Folic”, uses digital and social media to target women in the relevant age group across all social demographics. During development of the 2015 campaign, we consulted with our target audience as well as experts specialising in women’s healthcare, and advocacy groups for neural tube defects on the island of Ireland. The campaign was supported by in-store promotional activity targeting over 1,300 pharmacies, as well as retail outlets where folic acid is sold.
The results from 2015 have been encouraging, with an increase of 10 per cent in women reporting taking folic acid supplements post-campaign. Additionally, the retail sector reported an increase in folic acid supplement sales of 26 per cent during our campaign compared with the same time in 2014.
This is an important public health issue but a challenging one to overcome, as 50 per cent of pregnancies are unplanned and women have an understandable reluctance to take a preventative measure when they do not perceive themselves or their unborn baby to be at risk. The evidence is clear that neural tube defects are preventable in 70 per cent of cases if folic acid supplements are taken by all women who may become pregnant.
We would urge all to share in the campaign in June as widely as possible. – Yours, etc,
RAY DOLAN,
Chief Executive Officer,
Safefood,
7 Eastgate Avenue,
Little Island, Co Cork.