Investigation Analysis of Red Blood Cell Folic Acid Concentration in Women of Childbearing Age in Licheng District of Jinan
Zhao Jian
Wang Xiulei
Sun Li
Chen Yan
He Bing
Abstract：OBJECTIVE To understand the folic acid status of reproductive-age women in Licheng District of Jinan,and to advise women planning to conceive on optimal folic acid supplementation to reduce the risk of fetal birth defects.METHODS Select 393 women of childbearing age who underwent red blood cell folate concentration testing at Maternal and Child Health and Family Planning Service Center in Licheng District of Jinan from July 2023 to June 2024,and analyze the differences in their red blood cell folate concentration.A survey was conducted to compare the differences in folate adherence between women of childbearing age who participated(n=117)and those who did not participate(n=165)in red blood cell folate concentration testing.RESULTS The average erythrocyte folate concentration of 393 women of childbearing age in Licheng District was 254.74 ng/ml,and 341(86.77%)were below the requirement for pregnancy preparation(＜400.0 ng/mL).The red blood cell folate concentration was significantly lower in the＜30 years group(235.1 ng/mL)than in the＞30 years group(300.16 ng/mL).There was no significant difference in red blood cel folate concentration between the two groups before taking different doses of folic acid(P＞0.05).After taking folic acid,the red blood cell folate concentration in the 0.8 mg dose group(677.10 ng/mL)was higher than that in the 0.4 mg dose group(377.37 ng/mL)(t=-3.491,P＜0.05).The compliance of red blood cell folic acid intake was higher in those who took part in red blood cell folic acid test[63.24%(74/117)]than those who did not take part in the test[37.58%(62/165)].CONCLUSION The overall level of folate in women of childbearing age in Licheng district of Jinan was low,and the younger the women were,the lower the red blood cell folate concentration was.Taking 0.4 mg folic acid for 3 months before pregnancy does not meet the requirements of pregnancy preparation.Local governments should explore individualized folic acid supplementation programs to improve the compliance of folic acid supplementation and reduce the incidence of birth defects.
Keywords：folic acidfetal neural tube defectred blood cell folate concentrationfolic acid intake compliance
Publication Date：2025-04-10
Online Publishing Date：2025-08-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：3( 33-35 )