"Women who took extra folic acid in the weeks before and just after becoming pregnant were less likely to have a child with autism in a new study from Norway.  Because lack of folic acid has been tied to brain and spinal cord birth defects groups including the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force USPSTF already call for women who may become pregnant to take daily supplements containing the B vitamin.  The new study provides an additional reason to take folic acid in addition to the preventive effect that we already know it has against neural tube defects said Dr. Pal Suren from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health in Oslo who led the research.  It underlines the importance of starting early preferably before the pregnancy he told Reuters Health.  One in  children in the U.S. has an autism spectrum disorder according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That number has risen in recent years but its unclear whether thats due to more kids with symptoms or doctors who are more likely to recognize and diagnose autism.  The new study which appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association doesnt prove low folic acid in pregnant women causes their babies to develop autism or that high doses can prevent it. And Suren and his colleagues didnt see an effect of folic acid on other autism spectrum disorders such as Aspergers.  They followed just over  women and their children born between  and .  When women were about halfway through their pregnancies they reported on any supplements or vitamins theyd taken in the few weeks before becoming pregnant and the two months afterward  the time when folic acid is thought to have the strongest effect on development.  By the time their kids were between three and  years old  had been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder including  with autism itself.  Sponsored Surens team found one in  babies born to women who reported taking folic acid early in pregnancy had autism compared to about two in  of those whose moms didnt take folic acid. On the other hand there was no link between fish oil taken during pregnancy and autism risk.  That suggests its something about folic acid in particular that influences a babys autism risk.  The biggest problem we have is how do you know its folic acid and not just a more healthconscious mother said Cathrine Hoyo who has studied folic acid supplementation at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham North Carolina.  Doing that analysis really added another layer toward convincing us that there is something to it Hoyo who wasnt involved in the new research told Reuters Health.  BEFORE PREGNANCY TOO  Researchers said folic acids effects on genes and DNA repair could explain its role in brain development disorders in growing babies including autism.  The USPSTF recommends all women who are planning to or could become pregnant take between  and  micrograms of the vitamin daily. The U.S. and Canada have also required flour to be fortified with folic acid since the late s to cut down on birth defect risks.  Still The message for folic acid before pregnancy has been a little bit lost said Rebecca Schmidt who has studied prenatal vitamins and autism at the University of California Davis.  If you are not even just planning a pregnancy but able to get pregnant then you should be taking some sort of folic acid supplement she told Reuters Health.  SOURCE bit.lyJjFzqx httpbit.lyJjFzqx Journal of the American Medical Association online February  ."