Folic acid absorption in pregnancy.

Folic acid absorption was studied in six non-pregnant women, and nine pregnant women undergoing therapeutic termination of pregnancy between 10 to 26 weeks, using 2 mg. of folic acid labelled with 10 muCi of tritiated folic acid. Absorption varied between 65 and 95 per cent, with a mean absorption of 80 per cent, in both pregnant and non-pregnant subjects. Similarly, there was no difference of retention between the groups. The results indicate that there is no change in the absorption of folic acid in the first 26 to 28 weeks of pregnancy.