Low vitamin B12 levels increase birth defect risk

A recent study published in the July issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology investigated B vitamins and homocysteine as risk factors for children born with spina bifida, a defect in the formation of the spinal cord. Researchers compared the vitamin B12 blood levels of 45 mothers and their children with spina bifida with those of 83 mothers and their healthy children. The researchers found that the levels of B12 in mothers whose children had spina bifida was significantly lower (21%) than the mothers with healthy children. These findings suggest that low maternal vitamin B12 status increases the risk of birth defects and that women in their childbearing years may benefit from vitamin B12 supplementation.