Folic acid for Cardio-vascular system

The Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Oxford in England, has published a study involving 56 participants with established coronary artery disease. Low-dose folic acid supplementation was found to improve the function of the blood vessels. The participants of the study were divided into groups three groups; one was a high-dose group dosed with 5 mg of folic acid a day, the second was low-dose group dosed with 400 mcg of folic acid a day and a the third was a control group dosed with a placebo. The participants were given either folic acid or a placebo for a period of seven weeks prior to a coronary artery bypass surgery. The results indicated that supplementation with a low dose of folic acid of 400 mcg a day improved the different indices of vascular function. In particular, the vessels became more flexible and responsive to the dilatation. A high dose of folic acid supplementation was as effective as 400 mcg a day and did not display any added benefits. The results of the study have suggested that 400 mcg of folic acid a day may improve vascular function and therefore may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. High doses of folic acid are probably not necessaey for this purpose.

The effect of folic acid on vascular function after acute myocardial infarction was studied in the University Hospital in Belgium. The results of the study were published by the American Journal of Cardiology in 2007. In this randomized double blind, placebo-controlled study involving 40 participants, and high dose of folic acid supplementation after an acute myocardial function was found to improve endothelial dysfunction. The participants were divided into two groups. One group was given 10 mg a day of folic acid and the second group was given a placebo for a period of six weeks. After a two week wash out, the study was run for another six weeks. Folic acid supplementation was found to significantly improve general blood flow. The blood flow was assessed by the dilatation of the brachial artery. The conclusion of this study was that a six week treatment with high-dose folic acid improves endothelial function after acute myocardial infarction. Interestingly enough, this improvement was independent of homocystine blood levels.

The Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Pisa School of Medicine, Italy, ran a twelve week, randomized, placebo-controlled study that involved sixty overweight, but otherwise healthy subjects with normal glucose tolerance. The participants of this study were supplemented with folic acid. The participants of the study were randomized assigned supplementation with folic acid or a placebo. The supplementation of folic acid was found to decrease insulin resistance, thereby, improving insulin sensitivity and reducing circulation levels of certain mediators of inflammation. The effect was independent of the weight change. At the end of the treatment, the participants who received folic acid supplementation demonstrated decreased levels of homocystine, improved insulin sensitivity and a decline in circulating concentration of various inflammation mediators. This observation suggests that supplementation with folic acid may prevent atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease in otherwise healthy, overweight individuals.

A double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study was conducted in Germany to evaluate the effect of folic acid on the carotid artery internal layer thickness. The carotid artery internal layer is used as a marker of atherosclerotic risk. Fifty participants participated in the study, with an average age of 60 and with an internal layer thickness measured at over 1 mm. They were divided into two groups. The first group received 2.5 mg of folic acid and 0.5 mg of vitamin B12 and 25 mg of vitamin B6 daily. The second group was dosed with a placebo. The study was conducted over one year. The group receiving treatment demonstrated significantly reduced levels of internal layer thickness. It is interesting that this effect was found to be independent of the homocystine concentration in the blood. This study suggests that supplementation with folic acid; vitamin B12 and vitamin B6 may reduce the risk of developing atherosclerosis and atherosclerotic complications.