Awareness among mothers of Down syndrome children on the importance of folic acid consumption during pregnancy

Abstract

Objective: The maternal use of folic acid supplementation particularly during the preconception period has been suggested to thwart Down syndrome, thus the awareness among the mothers of Down syndrome children regarding folic acid consumption and other factors was assessed in this study. Methods: In this population-based case study, mothers of children with Down syndrome [n=192] living in the city of Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, were enrolled through schools run by The Down syndrome society. Using a specially structured questionnaire that included questions on socio-demographic variables, women’s knowledge about folic acid supplementation, and timing of supplementation was evaluated. Results: Analysis of data indicated children born to mothers who were 35 and above failed to follow recommended Folic acid supplementation. Around 70% percent of the DS mothers started taking supplementation after a confirmed pregnancy. Children were more likely to be born with DS if they were the 4th or more, child born to the same mother in the family. The rate was observed to be higher if they were born to mothers with even higher parity [>4]. Conclusion: The results of this study imply that folic acid supplementation is crucial for the prevention of Down syndrome before conception, as well as for the post-conception period in all women, especially for women who are 35 years and over and women with high parity.