A new report revealed that Hispanic babies are at a high risk of neural tube defects and unfortified corn masa may have a big role to play in this.
The March of Dimes, a non-profit health organization released a new update of a report it first released in 2008 warning that Hispanic babies are at a 12 percent higher risk of neural tube defects than white babies. Hispanic women are also more likely to give birth to premature babies with such defects.
According to the report, unfortified corn masa may have a big role to play in this. While the FDA requires manufacturers to fortify wheat products with folic acid, corn masa flour remains unregulated. Unfortunately, this flour is the staple diet of Hispanic women. Hence, they are also less likely to take folic acid supplements as part of standard neonatal care.
"This is why the March of Dimes is striving to have masa cornmeal fortified with folate," Ramos said in a statement. "Corn masa flour is not part of the standard American diet, so, since 2012, we've been working on this, making progress slowly."
Apart from pressuring the FDA on folic acid, the March of Dimes this month enlisted Latin Grammy Award-winning artist Thalia to help educate Hispanic women and girls on neonatal care and resources available to them through the government.
"We want women to know that there are things we can do to protect ourselves and our babies, like taking a multivitamin with folic acid before and during pregnancy," Thalia said in the statement. "There's nothing more important than the health of our babies."
Neural tube defect, scientifically known as spina bifida is the most common permanently disabling birth defect in the United States. It happens when a baby is in the womb and the spinal column does not close all of the way. Scientists believe that genetic and environmental factors act together to cause the condition, though the exact cause of this defect is not known as yet, according to a Mayo Clinic report.
