Special announcements: Folic Acid Awareness Week Jan 2-8, 2011
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Special announcements

Mark your calendars: Folic Acid Awareness Week is January 2-8, 2011. Materials are available on the National Council on Folic Acid (NCFA) website at www.folicacidinfo.org. On the left side of the home page, click on "FOLIC ACID RESOURCES", then click on "FOLIC ACID INFO" to access the materials.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services - Be sure to check out The 3,000, an important message to women about folic acid and birth defects.

NOW AVAILABLE!!

“Folic Acid: At Work for You!”
A Folic Acid Worksite Wellness Program

Through a grant from the March of Dimes Florida Chapter, the University of Florida’s Food Science and Human Nutrition Department has developed a folic acid educational toolkit for use in the workplace. The toolkit provides materials to help occupational health and wellness staff educate their employees about the health benefits of the vitamin folic acid, particularly for birth defect risk reduction.

Each toolkit contains:

• Guidebook for occupational health and wellness professionals
• Two DVDs with folic acid videos
• CD-ROM with PowerPoint® presentations, sample emails, sample newsletter, quiz questions, and PDF copies of handouts, case studies, and brochures
• Copies of handouts and case studies (English and Spanish), recipes
• Posters and brochures in English and Spanish

Contact Gail Rampersaud at gcr@ufl.edu or 352-392-1978 Ext. 423 for more information.

Upcoming events 

No events scheduled at this time.

Newsletters and Compendium

Download the Florida Folic Acid Coalition's "Compendium of the Council's Activities, 1999-2003".

Download and print our newsletters in pdf format (click here to download Adobe Acrobat reader).

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New or Controversial

FDA Approves New Oral Contraceptive that also Raises Folate Levels

“Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new oral contraceptive (OC), Beyaz™ (drospirenone / ethinyl estradiol / levomefolate calcium tablets and levomefolate calcium tablets).  Beyaz is the first and only OC approved to raise folate levels in women who choose an OC for birth control.  In these women, Beyaz raises folate levels for the purpose of reducing the risk of a neural tube defect (NTD) in a pregnancy conceived while taking Beyaz or shortly after discontinuing it.  Beyaz combines the hormone ingredients in the birth control pill YAZ® (drospirenone 3 mg/ ethinyl estradiol 20 mcg) with 451 mcg levomefolate calcium, which is a B vitamin.

‘Combining an oral contraceptive with folate is important, because women may become pregnant during OC use or shortly after discontinuation, possibly before seeking preconception counseling from their healthcare provider,’said Dr. Anita Nelson, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, California.  ‘For women who want to use an oral contraceptive, Beyaz offers a new option for women to receive daily folate supplementation.’”

For more information: Click here

Corn Masa Flour Fortification

Since mandatory folic acid fortification began in 1998, the rates of NTDs have decreased significantly, but still remain higher in Hispanic populations  compared to other groups.  Fortification of a product commonly used by Hispanics, corn masa flour, might increase intake of folic acid by Hispanic women and reduce the risk of NTDs. Discussions between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and corn masa flour producers were initiated in order to make fortification a reality. However, these efforts are currently on hold pending the evaluation of studies related to the issue of additional folic acid in the general population. Some research has reported an increase in the incidence of certain cancers coincident with folic acid fortification. The CDC is waiting on additional studies before moving forward with corn masa flour fortification.

Other news

NEW! Online Training Module Now Available for the "Folic Acid Every Day" Toolkit. The “Folic Acid Every Day” toolkit is an educational program and resource kit for learning and teaching about folic acid and neural tube defects in a variety of health care settings.  The toolkit was developed by faculty in the Food Science and Human Nutrition Department (FSHN) at the University of Florida, UF/IFAS. The toolkit has been recently updated and is available for purchase through the IFAS Extension Bookstore.
               
In Spring 2006, a training module for the toolkit became available on this Web site.  The training module was developed by faculty and staff in the FSHN Department at UF/IFAS as part of a March of Dimes Florida Chapter grant. The training module was designed to help health care professionals learn about the materials in the kit and how to use them effectively for different audiences. The toolkit includes an Educator’s Guide with lesson plans and handouts, a DVD with two videos, a CD-ROM with a PowerPoint® presentation and PDF files of the handouts, and an interactive learning tool for designing meals. The materials found in the toolkit can be used to instruct and educate health care professionals, consumers, and patients. The training module describes each component in the kit and provides instructions and suggestions for use in different health care settings.  The online training module is free, user-friendly, and can be accessed at any time.

What is available in the training module?
• A description of the components in the toolkit.
• An explanation of how materials are used with health care providers, clients, or patients.
• An animated demonstration of how to use the meal planning activity in the toolkit. 

Accessing the training module
• Click here.
Note: You will need to enter a valid email address to access the training module.

Ordering the toolkit
The “Folic Acid Every Day” toolkit, in English or Spanish, is available for purchase at the IFAS Extension Bookstore by calling (352) 392-1764 or at the bookstore Web site at www.ifasbooks.com.

FFAC Position Statement. The FFAC recently developed a position statement concerning folic acid recommendations and other folic acid-related issues. The purpose of the position statement is to clarify the Coalition’s position and support for:

• current U.S. Public Health Service and Institute of Medicine recommendations on folic acid supplementation for women of childbearing age

• current FDA rules on fortification of enriched cereal grain products

• support of education for all women of childbearing age, plus other population groups, concerning the health benefits of folic acid

• support of development of clinical guidelines that promote folic acid awareness as a routine and standard part of the delivery of preventive or other health care services

• support for the continued monitoring and measurement of knowledge, awareness and behavior of consumers regarding folic acid

• support for  basic, epidemiologic, and appropriate experimental research regarding the association between folic acid and birth defects and chronic disease risk reduction

Click here to see the entire FFAC position statement.

Other activities

Recent activities and accomplishments of the Florida Folic Acid Coalition (FFAC):

• July 19-22, 2008: the FFAC exhibited at the Florida Dietetic Association's Annual Symposium in Boca Raton.

• March 29, 2008: the FFAC distributed folic acid educational materials and other items at the Alachua County (Florida) March for Babies walk.

• October 30, 2007: the FFAC and March of Dimes North Central Florida Division hosted a free Grab-n-Go Folic Acid Breakfast at the University of Florida.

• October 18-19, 2007: The FFAC exhibited at the 2007 Florida Occupational Health Nursing Conference in Orlando.

• October 2007: Spina Bifida Awareness Month and Folic Acid Awareness Month in Florida.

• August 31, 2007: FFAC Executive Committee meeting.

• May 2007: The FFAC exhibited at the Governor's Conference on Women's Health in Tampa.

•  March 24, 2007: WalkAmerica, Alachua County, Florida. Information table.

• January 2007: One-year grant renewal by the March of Dimes Florida Chapter to develop and evalaute a folic acid educational program for worksites.  

• January 8-14, 2007: Promotion of National Folic Acid Awareness Week. 

• October 2006: The FFAC exhibited at the 46th Annual Florida Occupational Health Conference, Lake Buena Vista. 

• June 2006: FFAC Executive Committee meeting.

• May 2006: The FFAC exhibited at the Governor's Conference on Women's Health in Orlando. FFAC Executive Committee members Lynn Bailey, PhD, and Elizabeth Jensen, VitaGrant Project Manager, presented sessions on folic acid.

•  January 9-15, 2006: National Folic Acid Awareness Week. Various print, radio and TV media activities.

•  December 2005, January 2006: “Folic Acid Every Day” toolkit training sessions conducted at the Healthy Start Coalitions in Jacksonville and Miami-Dade.

•  November 2005: The University of Florida's March of Dimes Collegiate Council hosted a folic acid breakfast on campus. The FFAC participated by helping with the distribution of buttons, magnets, brochures and other folic acid-themed items to help promote the health benefits of folic acid to the University's students.

•  November 2005: The FFAC participated in the Oak Hammock Health Fair in Gainesville.

•  September 2005: The FFAC exhibited at the Florida Nurses Association 92nd Biennial Convention in Bonita Springs.

•  July 2005: The FFAC exhibited at the Florida Public Heatlh Association's annual conference in Sarasota.

•  July 2005: The FFAC exhibited at the Florida Dietetic Association's 70th Annual Symposium in Ft. Myers.

•  June 2005: Presented the "Folic Acid Every Day" toolkit at the National Summit on Preconception Care, Atlanta, GA.

•  May 2005: Exhibited at the American Academy of Physiscian's Assistants Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.

•  May 2005: Conducted "Folic Acid Every Day" toolkit training for VitaGrant outreach personnel, Tampa, FL.

•  March 19, 2005: WalkAmerica, Alachua County, Florida. Information table.

•  FFAC Executive Committee meetings: February 28, 2005 and June 2, 2005.

•  January 24-30, 2005: National Folic Acid Awareness Week. Various print, radio and TV media activities.

•  January 2005: One-year grant award by the March of Dimes Florida Chapter to conduct folic acid educational activities targeted to health care professionals in Florida.

•  December 2004: Conducted 3 folic acid sessions at the Partners in Perinatal Health Sharing Solutions Conference, Orlando, Florida.

•  October 2004: Contract between the University of Florida and the Florida Department of Health for continued folic acid activities in Florida and establishing the FFAC Coordinator position.