Translations:Folate/66/en

In the 1950s and 1960s, scientists began to discover the biochemical mechanisms of action for folate. In 1960, researchers linked folate deficiency to risk of neural tube defects. In the late 1990s, the U.S. and Canadian governments decided that despite public education programs and the availability of folic acid supplements, there was still a challenge for women of child-bearing age to meet the daily folate recommendations, which is when those two countries implemented folate fortification programs. As of December 2018, 62 countries mandated food fortification with folic acid.