{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]],"date-time":"2026-06-04T19:33:46Z","timestamp":1780601626202,"version":"3.54.1"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2020,12,3]],"date-time":"2020-12-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1606953600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100006454","name":"Bundesamt f\u00fcr Lebensmittelsicherheit und Veterin\u00e4rwesen","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["0710000xxx"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["0710000xxx"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100006454","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Schweizer Fols\u00e4ures Stiftung","award":["none"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["none"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Folate plays an essential role in the prevention of neural tube defects, yet little is known about the folate status of women of reproductive age or to what degree the general population is aware of the importance of folate in early-life development. We aimed to determine folate status in women of reproductive age and pregnant women in Switzerland, and to assess folate awareness in the Swiss population. Methods: In a convenience sample of 171 women of reproductive age and 177 pregnant women throughout Switzerland, we measured red blood cell (RBC) folate concentration. In a second convenience sample (n = 784, men and women) we assessed folate knowledge with an online survey. Results: RBC folate concentration (median interquartile range) was 442 (366, 564) nmol\/L in women of reproductive age and 873 (677, 1177) nmol\/L in pregnant women. Folate deficiency (RBC folate &lt;340 nmol\/L) was found in 19.9% of women of reproductive age and 2.8% of pregnant women, while 91.8% of women of reproductive age and 52.0% of pregnant women showed folate concentrations indicating an elevated risk of neural tube defects (RBC folate &lt;906 nmol\/L). The online survey showed that a high proportion (\u226588%) of participants were aware of folate\u2019s role in neural tube defect (NTD) prevention and fetal development, yet knowledge about dietary sources and national recommendations of folate supplementation when planning pregnancy were limited. Conclusion: The high prevalence of folate inadequacy in Swiss women suggests an elevated risk of neural tube defects and calls for urgent measures to increase folate intakes.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu12123729","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,12,3]],"date-time":"2020-12-03T11:15:43Z","timestamp":1606994143000},"page":"3729","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":9,"title":["Inadequate Status and Low Awareness of Folate in Switzerland\u2014A Call to Strengthen Public Health Measures to Ensure Sufficient Intakes"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0134-6217","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Isabelle","family":"Herter-Aeberli","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Human Nutrition Laboratory, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nina","family":"Wehrli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Human Nutrition Laboratory, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kurt","family":"B\u00e4rlocher","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Scientific Board of the Folic Acid Foundation Switzerland, 6302 Zug, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Maria","family":"Andersson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Nutrition Research Unit, Children\u2019s Research Center, University Children\u2019s Hospital Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Janice","family":"Sych","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Food and Beverage Innovation, ZHAW School of Life Sciences and Facility Management, Einsiedlerstrasse 34, 8820 Waedenswil, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,12,3]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"De-Regil, L.M., Pe\u00f1a-Rosas, J.P., Fern\u00e1ndez-Gaxiola, A.C., and Rayco-Solon, P. 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