Digital Commons Network^™

Australian Healthy Eating Index Is Associated With Homocysteine, Vitamin B12 And Folate Biomarkers, Ali Sadeghpour, Jo Russell, Vicki Flood, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

No abstract provided.

Folate And Vitamin B12 In Older Australians, Victoria M. Flood, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The recent viewpoint by Kamien1 and letter by Gunasekera2 rightly highlight the benefits of folate fortification and the unlikely occurrence of masking pernicious anaemia. Food Standards Australia New Zealand recently submitted a proposal supporting the mandatory fortification of bread-making flour to increase folate intakes in women of child-bearing age, with the aim of reducing the risk of children being born with neural tube defects.3 This proposal has had extensive public comment and will be considered by the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council. Several public groups and individuals continue to raise concerns that higher dietary folate levels could …

Prevalence Of Low Serum Folate And Vitamin B12 In An Older Australian Population, Victoria M. Flood, Wayne T. Smith, Karen L. Webb, Elena Rochtchina, Valerie Anderson, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: To examine the prevalence of low serum folate and vitamin B12, in association with elevated serum homocysteine, in a representative sample of older Australians. Methods: During 1997-2000, 3,508 persons aged 50+ years were examined in a population-based cohort study conducted in two postcodes, west of Sydney, Australia. Of these, 2,901 participants (82.7%) provided fasting blood for estimates of serum folate, vitamin B12 and total homocysteine. Results: Low serum B12 (<185 pmol>/L) was found in 22.9% of participants and low serum folate (<6.8 nmol/L) in 2.3% of participants. Among those people with very low serum vitamin B12 (<125 pmol/L) and low serum folate, 51% had elevated homocysteine. Conclusions: Low serum levels of vitamin B12 and elevated serum homocysteine are relatively frequent in older Australians. Implications: Appropriate public health action should be considered to reduce the prevalence of low serum vitamin B12 and elevated homocysteine in older Australians.

Impact Evaluation Of A Folate Education Campaign With And Without The Use Of A Health Claim, P. G. Williams, J. Mchenery, Anne Mcmahon, H. Anderson

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective To measure the impact of a Kellogg/Northcott Society multimedia folate education campaign, run nationally from July 1998 to June 1999, with and without the use of health claims.

Method Three national telephone surveys of over 500 Australian women aged 18-44 in July and November 1998 and May 1999.

Results Awareness of the role of folate in the prevention of birth defects rose by 8% in the first 6 months of the campaign (without health claims) and by 15% in the second half (when health claims were incorporated). Awareness of the recommendation to take folate before pregnancy rose from 21% …