Folic acid vs. folate—which should you be taking? Find out!
DATA:
0:00 Folic acid explained
0:10 Folic acid and pregnancy
1:30 How much vitamin B9 do you need?
2:25 The solution
3:32 Folic acid vs. folate
4:15 How to avoid synthetic folic acid
4:45 The best sources of folate
4:55 Folic acid and vitamin B12
5:53 Learn more about vitamin B12!
Today I’m going to cover folic acid and folate. Are they the same? No, they’re not—and we’re going to talk about why.
Folic acid is the synthetic version of vitamin B9, and folate is the natural version.
Many pregnant women take a supplement that contains folic acid because data shows that it can help prevent neural tube defects. But many people are finding that they have a genetic mutation related to B9, which means there could be a problem if they take folic acid.
This genetic mutation involves an enzyme responsible for converting folic acid into an active form so your body can use it. People with this mutation need more vitamin B9 than usual, but it’s also important that they don’t have too much.
For example, one of the top benefits of vitamin B9 is that it protects against the initiation of cancer. However, excess vitamin B9 is also involved in the initiation of new cancer cells.
The solution is to take a version of vitamin B9 that doesn’t require an enzyme to be converted—making this genetic mutation not a problem anymore.
What we need is more methylfolate. Methylfolate is a type of vitamin B9 that’s easily absorbed and doesn’t require other enzyme reactions like synthetic folic acid does.
Overall, it’s essential to avoid products that contain folic acid and consume more foods that contain natural folate. The best source of natural B9 is dark leafy green vegetables.
Dr. Eric Berg DC Bio:
Dr. Berg, age 57, is a chiropractor who specializes in Healthy Ketosis & Intermittent Fasting. He is the author of the best-selling book The Healthy Keto Plan, and is the Director of Dr. Berg Nutritionals. He no longer practices, but focuses on health education through social media.
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Disclaimer:
Dr. Eric Berg received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1988. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Berg is a licensed chiropractor in Virginia, California, and Louisiana, but he no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients so he can focus on educating people as a full time activity, yet he maintains an active license. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, and prescription or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Berg and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
#keto #ketodiet #weightloss #ketolifestyle
Thanks for watching! I hope this increases your awareness of folic acid vs. folate. I’ll see you in the next video.
35 responses to “Folic Acid vs. Folate Explained and Simplified”
Hope you are doing well Dr. Berg. Thank you for the valuable information👑🏆
Thank you, Dr Berg. So should a pregnant woman take a prenatal vitamin as well as making sure natural folate is consumed?
Try to find a prenatal without the folic acid but the folate instead.
@Rachel I thanks!
Thank you SO MUCH!!! This is a topic that several doctors (of mine and my mother) have failed to understand or explain clearly.
You’re very welcome!
when you ask an oncologist they cant explaiñ it also just answer you that they dont recomend to take it
Take natural form of b9 called folate instead of folic acid…folate is found in dark leafy vegetables
Thank you Dr Berg! 🐱👍🏿
They put this folic acid in everything!!! You can’t even find pet foods without it! I think it’s done purposefully to keep people and pets sick! I try to keep it out of my life for me and my animals! Thanks for the info Dr Berg
Good Morning , Dr .Berg
Thank you so much for sharing this Valuable information with everyone , Have a Great day !
Sure, no problem. Happy to help you all. Have a great one too!
There’s obscure research dating back almost 20 years that connect folic acid (not folate) to regeneration of the hair cells responsible for hearing. This connection was triggered by research on the way birds, especially loud birds like parrots, are repeatedly destroying their hair cells due to their loud noises and then regenerating the hairs. A plausible folic acid role was noted. A 2007 study of a small set of elderly subjects found that folic acid may play a role in reducing or even reversing hearing loss due to aging.
I’ve been taking 20mg (yes, 20,000mcg!) folic acid daily for more than three years, and at age 72, am the only one of my siblings without the need of a hearing aid. (My hearing tests show only a modest drop of the higher frequencies, less than what is normally associated with aging.) A more recent study suggested that 5mg or more daily may increase the incidence of colon cancer; all my colonoscopic exams have remained polyps-free. This study did not take into consideration other supplementation that may be colon-protective; there needs to be more studies that take a more wholistic approach to assessing nutrient supplementation, as no single nutrient is able to function on its own.
As the folic acid seems to be of benefit and there are no apparent side effects, I’m making the presumption that my physiology has figured out how to use it efficiently and effectively.
BTW, I take a Chinese OTC brand of folic acid; 100 5mg tablets costs 9. That’s 9 yuan, or about USD $1.30!
72 is not that old and don’t give all the credit to folic acid for your hearing strength.
@james oommen I just summarized; my family genes suggest I’ll be actively wearing out my pants well into my 90s (my father died at age 91 from an acute case of job hunting!). I am comparing myself to my similarly aged siblings and cousins, all of whom depend on hearing aids for their everyday activities. I happen to be a composer, and as I lack the mastery that was possessed by Mozart and Beethoven, I consider it necessary to do what I can to preserve my hearing. With that in mind, I’ve also been following Berg’s “healthy” keto diet for a couple of years, so its not just the folic acid; as previously suggested, everything ultimately works together. 😉
Thanks Dr berg . I went from clean keto to carnivore yesterday and I’m feeling really good about this. 😊
Thanks Dr Berg, very helpful. I have PCOS and I take 600 mcg of methyl folate and this has been helpful. God bless you Dr Berg
I happened upon your videos two weeks ago after a visit to a nutritionist as I am 62 and want to lose weight to prevent diabetes and get the load off my joints.
I threw out much in my fridge and replaced it with foods from many of your videos.
I ate bread and diet soda. Both are gone now.
I just finished an overnight fast, took a walk after waking up, then ate breakfast 2 hours later with coffee.
Too early to mention weight gain, we shall see in 2 weeks.
It will help you not to get discouraged if you use the Dr. Berg electrolytes in fresh lemon water, maybe a sprinkle of Himalayan sea salt. When your Potassium drops it’s a bad feeling. I even drink it in the middle of the night when I wake up feeling like I can’t sleep, getting used to the switch to fat burning and ketones. I go right back to sleep
@NoAutumn
I already drink homemade electrolytes with pickle juice, Himalaya salt, cream tartar and lemon juice.
Just had lemon juice in water with cinnamon and curcumin.
Thanks for discussing this. We deal with this in my family.
You’re very welcome
Thanks Dr. Berg! Please do more videos about MTHFR. A few years ago i tested deficient of folate. I was taking the synthetic methofolate like 15mg and within months I had severe problems like memory loss and paranoia. I stopped taking methofolate when I linked it to these cognitive issues. I then started a b-complex supplement for a month and now I eat nutritious foods and take a multivitamin
Get Methylfolate from Romaine lettuce,Sprouted legumes(mung beans, chickpeas),Broccoli,Asparagus,Leafy greens (spinach, kale),Cabbage and Fermented foods(sauerkraut). Is methylfolate natural or synthetic? It is natural form of folate and has many advantages over synthetic folic acid.
@Keto Diet Thanks I will
I agree. I have 3 daughter’s, myself, and two sister’s with this.
Man I’d love to see more on EDS & MTHFR! My family suffers from this.
I used to eat lots of pizza and processed foods and drank juice or sugary drinks with my meals.
Since I’ve been slim and mesomorphic in complexion since a young age I used to feel no remorse for my bad eating habits and sedentarism.
Fortunately no health complications happened before I came across Dr Eric Berg’s channel and decided to start living in a radically different way in what I eat and how I spend my day.
I could go on and on but this man has made such a tremendous impact all over the world with this information; simply because being physically dysfunctional is the norm for the majority of people.
I’m now set on a mission to become more functional, both physically and cognitively.
I studied medicine and fought with others about why they continued to prescribe folic acid to people with mutations like myself. What you’re stating now is exactly what I fought about for years “if we have this mutation it means we cannot metabolize it, hence it will result like poison for us”. I didn’t take any because of that, despite the fact that I trusted them years before., I did take it, and the outcome was as expected: I felt awful. People start taking loads of worthless and deadly medicines as soon as they find out they have this mutation, and they also push their offspring to take them., which, In my opinion, it’s a disaster. Unfortunately, metafolate did not work for me either.
Love this insight Eric, thank you. Been following your for 3+ years and appreciate your journey. For just as long I’ve been following Matt Blackburn on Mitolife radio and seen how you are both slowly aligning. It’s encouraging and I’m thankful for your work.
Thanks for your support!
I take prenatal vitamins because this one vitamin has all the other vitamins in one.
This is why I figure out that I should just take these prenatal vitamins.
Thank you for the information Dr. It is well appreciated.
Thank you, Dr. Berg for this! I have Sickle Cell Anemia and they want me to take folic acid 4 1 mg pills every day. I stopped it a long time ago as the taste reminded me of the yellow chalk I used to eat when I was little from my sister’s school supplies a serious pica. Now they want me to take it again along with Vitamin D as they said this was low. I refused to get it from the pharmacy!! I am going to purchase it from the supplement company I trust and have been using for 16 years. Thanks for this, and also up my dark green leafy vegetables.
Thank you for your time and videos. No matter how many unhealthy things i removed from my diet or how many calories i cut i was unable to lose weight but ive now lost 7lbs for the first time in 3 years. I have stage 4 endometriosis all of my lower organs are glued together so badly no one is will to give me surgery and the pain keeps me from being able to exorcize or even walk fast or be in a car for very long.
Day 8 on Keto+IF. Male. 31. 177cms. 84kgs.
Started with IF for 16-8 and now doing 18-6.
Appettite fully gone. One positive thing.
I have two concerns..
1. I encounter 2-3 seconds of blackouts in the mornings when I stand up from sitting or start walking.. Its recovering automatically tho.. ( Happened like this prior also few times in my life.. But now more frequently after I started Keto).
2. Immediately after 12pm first meal, I feel less energetic for some 30-40mins.. But after 6pm second meal I feel energetic throughout until I sleep.
Am I doing any mistake ?
You taking electrolytes?