BACKGROUND Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer related deaths in the United States. Several dietary factors have been identified that modify pancreatic cancer risk, including low folate levels. In addition to nutrition and lifestyle determinants, folate status may be influenced by genetic factors such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). In the present study, we investi...

BACKGROUND Many previous investigations of cobalamin and folate status were performed in white populations. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to determine whether there are racial differences in the prevalence of cobalamin and folate deficiency. DESIGN The study was a cross-sectional comparison of baseline serum cobalamin, folate, methylmalonic acid (MMA), total homocysteine (tHcy), and creatinin...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the relations between race or ethnicity, educational attainment, and serum and red blood cell folate concentrations. OBJECTIVE We examined the relation between educational attainment and serum and red blood cell folate concentrations in 8457 white, African American, and Mexican American men and women aged > or = 17 y. DESIGN We performed a cross-sectional an...

Folate is required for 1-carbon metabolism and deficiency in folate leads to megaloblastic anemia. Low levels of folate have been associated with increased risk of vascular disease. To investigate whether RDA of folate are met, habitual folate intake needs to be assessed reliably. We developed a FFQ to specifically measure folate intake over the previous 3 months in elderly people in the Nether...

OBJECTIVES Previous studies suggest that folate deficiency may occur in up to one third of patients with severe depression, and that treatment with the vitamin may enhance recovery of the mental state. There are, however, difficulties in interpreting serum and red cell folate assays in some patients, and it has been suggested that total plasma homocysteine is a more sensitive measure of functio...

The mechanism of birth defects induced by folate deficiency was focused on mainly in fetal development. Little is known about the effect of folate deficiency on the maternal uterus, especially on decidual angiogenesis after implantation which establishes vessel networks to support embryo development. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of folate deficiency on decidual angiogene...

OBJECTIVES To associate the severity of nutritional anaemia with serum levels of ferritin, vitamin B12 and folate; and to determine demographic, socio-economic and nutritional correlates for nutritional anemia in adolescents. METHODS Cross-sectional hospital-based study among 200 adolescents (10-18 y) with anemia. Dietary intake (24-h recall), and serum levels of folate, vitamin B12 and ferri...

Due to its role in the synthesis and repair of DNA, folate may protect against the development of cervical cancer. Prospective data on the possible association between folate and cervical cancer have been lacking. There is also a paucity of prospective evidence concerning the possible associations between cervical cancer and vitamin B12, which shares pathways with folate, and homocysteine, a ma...

BACKGROUND/AIMS Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) primarily involves the intestinal tract and can affect vitamin absorption. This study was designed to assess the prevalence of vitamin B12 and folate deficiencies in patients with IBD, and to identify the risk factors associated with abnormal serum vitamin B12 and folate levels. METHODS We evaluated the medical records of 195 patients with Croh...

BACKGROUND Epidemiologic evidence of a relation between serum total homocysteine (tHcy), vitamin B-12, and folate and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is inconsistent and unresolved. OBJECTIVE In this cohort study, we aimed to investigate associations between intakes and serum concentrations of folate and vitamin B-12 or serum tHcy and 10-y AMD incidence. DESIGN Serum folate, vitamin ...