HHPFS Folic Acid Knowledge & Use Among Hispanic Women

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FOLIC ACID KNOWLEDGE AND
USE AMONG HISPANIC WOMEN

WHAT IS THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM?

	The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Council on Folic Acid and the National Alliance on Hispanic Health have promoted folic acid use/consumption before pregnancy to prevent serious birth defects -- spina bifida and anencephaly.
	Hispanic/Latina women have a risk 1.5 to 3 times higher than non-Hispanic white women for having a child affected by these birth defects.
	Hispanic/Latina women have lower blood folate levels, and are less likely to consume foods fortified with folic acid.
	Hispanic/Latina women are less likely to have heard about folic acid, to know it can prevent birth defects, or take vitamins containing folic acid before pregnancy.

WHAT HAS CDC ACCOMPLISHED?

National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) has conducted a campaign to increase awareness of folic acid among Hispanic/Latina women. Activities include development of television, radio, and print messages in English and Spanish. Voluntary public service advertisements and paid media outreach were conducted. Both interventions focused on folic acid education for health care providers who work with Hispanic/Latina women. The paid campaign used community lay health workers (promotoras).

Example of program in action:

Pilot testing was completed in San Antonio and Miami at the end of 2002. Initial analysis of pre- and post-campaign survey data show increased awareness of folic acid among Hispanic/Latina women in these cities. In addition, the increase in knowledge translated into an increased use of folic acid. Following the paid media intervention, the knowledge and consumption patterns among Hispanic/Latina women were more similar to those of non-Hispanic women. Additional analyses are underway, and results will be used to improve the campaign and sustain the results.

WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS?

Long term continuation of this campaign and its evaluation should ultimately change the behaviors of Hispanic/Latina women prior to pregnancy and decrease the rate of neural tube defects in the Hispanic/Latino population. This will hopefully close the gap of health disparities between white and minority populations in the U.S., where this birth defect is concerned.

For more information, contact the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Mailstop F45, 4770 Buford Highway NE, Atlanta, GA 30341; (770) 488-7703; ail5@cdc.gov; www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/folico.

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		ATSDR Hispanic Health Program
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		Communicating Workplace Safety & Health in Spanish
		Dengue/Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever
		Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS)
		Folic Acid Knowledge & Use Among Hispanic Women
		Hispanic-Serving Health Professions Schools (HSHPS)
		Immigrant/ Hispanic Agricultural Worker Safety & Health
		Minority AIDS Initiative
		National Diabetes Prevention & Control Program
		Preventing Alcohol-Exposed Pregnancies Among Hispanic Women
		Preventing Food-Borne Diseases Among Pregnant Hispanic Women
		Protecting the Safety & Health of Immigrant Workers
		Public Health Prevention Service (PHPS)
		Reducing Tobacco-Related Disparities
		Urban Research Centers
		Viral Hepatitis Prevention

Last Updated on November 03, 2004
Office of Minority Health

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