Flour folic acid

In 1996, based on growing scientific evidence, the FDA ruled that folic acid should also be added to enriched flour. Folic acid can reduce risks of certain birth defects, anemia, and heart disease. 

Some of the nutrients lost when the wheat germ and bran are discarded are returned to the flour by adding small amounts of vitamins and minerals. Among the nutrients most commonly added are niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, folic acid, iron, and calcium. 

After the milling process, any gaseous treatments are applied, any powder treatments, e.g. ascorbic acid, are added, as well as any fortifying ingredients such as calcium sulfate. Different countries have various policies on fortifying flour. In the UK, white flour is fortified with calcium to make up for the calcium lost by not making a wholemeal flour. In the USA, bread is fortified with folic acid. It is possible for an untreated flour to be mixed with a flour improver containing the powder treatments. 

C Schorah, D Buss. Should flour fortification with folic acid be mandatory to reduce the incidence of neural Lube defects BNF Nutr Bull 20 292-301, 1995. 

Several studies have demonstrated an association between plasma tHcy levels and extent of CAD in populations not exposed to fortification of flour products with folic acid, even after controlling for conventional risk factors (26,27). In contrast, Brilakis et al. (28) found no association between plasma tHcy and angiographic CAD in a North American population consuming cereal grain flour fortified with folic acid. Silberberg et al. (29) found an association between plasma folate and CAD independent of tHcy. 

Brilakis ES, et al. Lack of association between plasma homocysteine and angiographic coronary artery disease in the era of fortification of cereal grain flour with folic acid. Atherosclerosis 2002 165(2) 375 381. 

Source Reprinted from Health Canada, Health Protection Branch consultative document on draft proposals-sub-jects (1) fortification of flour and pasta with folic acid, (2) harmonization of flour enrichment with the United States of America, (3) optional enrichment of flour. 

A consequence of these studies is that the Food and Drug Administration (fTDA) has recomtnended that commercially available flour and cereal products be fortified w ith folic acid 1-4 tug folic acid/kg flour) for preventing NTDs (Tucker cf ai, 1996). The consumer interested in the folate level in any particular food can view the label on the package. Folic acid supplements have the effect of reducing the level of homocysteine in the blood. This homocysteine effect appears directly relevant to the prevention of atherosclerosis, but may also be relevant to neural tube defects. The reader interested in continuing developments regarding neural tube defects and folate should take note of the relationship between folate and homocysteine, presented in the Vitamin 8 section. 

Folic acid is easily lost during storage of fresh vegetables at room temperature and through many heat processes. Oxidative destruction of 50-95% of the folate can occur with protracted cooking or canning. Currently in the United States folate is added to all enriched or fortified cereal and flour products in order to increase this nutrient to prevent neural tube defects and to reduce coronary disease and some cancers. Thus, the processed, fortified product will have more folate. 

Fblicadd Teirahydrofolic acid Formyl group (I) Folic acid 00 Para-amino benzoic acid PenlcUllum spent mycelium Spinach Uver Cottonseed flour... 

De Brouwer et al. (2010) identified 5 folate vitamers in their study 5-methyltet-rahydrofolate (the predominant vitamer), 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate and tetrahy-drofolate (the most labile vitamers), folic acid, and 10-formyl folic acid. This study reported that folate levels in wild-type rice were approximately 20 pg/lOO g lower than in bio-fortified rice [41], While separation of folate vitamers was obtained in 8 min run time, a previous LC-MS/MS method required 20 min [49]. Also, UPLC improved the sensitivity by reducing the limit of quantitation. Another study documented that endogenous 5-methyltetrahydrofolate in bread ranged between 1.3 and 3.4 pg/100 g [14]. Measurements of folic acid and 5-methyltetrahydrofolate in flour and infant milk formula have been successfully made using this method, described in the latter study. 

Alaburda, J., Almeida, A. P., Shundo, L., Ruvieri, V., and Sabino, M. 2008. Determination of folic acid in fortified wheat flours. J. Food Comp. Anal. 21 336-342. 

Chandra-Hioe, M. V, BucknaU, M. R, and Arcot, J. 2013. Folic acid-fortified flour Optimised and fast sample preparation coupled with a vahdated high-speed mass spectrometry analysis suitable for a fortification monitoring program. Food Anal. Methods. DOI 10.1007/S12161-012-9559-3. 

The introduction of 140 pg of folic acid per 100 g of flour in the USA, calculated to increase individual consumption of folic acid by 100 pgday , has reduced the incidence of abnormally low plasma folate from 21% to less than 2%, the incidence of mild hyperhomocysteinemia from 21% to 10%, and, most importantly, the incidence of NTD by about 20% over the first years of universal fortification. Because 30% of the population takes vitamin supplements and presumably would not be expected to derive significant benefit from fortification, the actual effect may be closer to a 30% decrease due to fortification. Recent calculations suggest that, for a variety of reasons, the overall fortification amount was about twice the mandatory amount. 

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