There were factors that are particularly associated with lower rates of use of folic acid supplements .
One of the most important of these is the link with unintended pregnancy , followed by age , socio-economic and ethnic group .
Integrated campaigns can increase the use of folic acid supplements to some extent .
Research trials indicated that : ( i ) printed re sources and the mass media used in isolation are not effective in the longer term ; and ( ii ) health-care-based initiatives can be effective and are more likely to be successful if they include making supplements easily available .
Campaigns and interventions have the potential to exacerbate socio-economic inequalities in folic acid use .
However , even high- quality campaigns that increase use result in under half of women in the target group taking supplements
OBJECTIVE To provide a basis for making recommendations on the potential to improve use of folic acid supplements in the UK , particularly among low-income and young women .
[Socioeconomic inequalities in the provision and uptake of prenatal care].
OBJECTIVE To describe socioeconomic inequalities in the provision and uptake of prenatal care among women in Barcelona ( Spain ) between 1994 and 2003 . METHODS Cross-sectional study of women in Barcelona who delivered a child without birth defects . Information was obtained from hospital medical records and a personal interview with women included in the Barcelona Birth Defects Registry , containing a r and om sample of 2 % of all pregnant women in the city ( n = 2299 ) . DEPENDENT VARIABLES number of obstetric visits , the trimester of the first visit , the number of obstetric ultrasound scans , the fifth-month diagnostic ultrasound scan , invasive procedures , prenatal folic acid intake , pregnancy planning , smoking and smoking cessation . The independent variables were maternal age and social class . Logistic regression models were filted for each dependent variable . RESULTS In social classes with manual occupations , there was a higher proportion of pregnant women who attended less than six obstetric visits and who attended the first obstetric visit after the first trimester . Moreover , these women were less likely to have undergone an invasive procedure , to have taken folic acid supplements , to have planned the pregnancy , to be non-smokers and to stop smoking . In the more privileged classes , there was a higher proportion of women who attended more than 12 obstetric visits and who underwent more than three ultrasound scans . CONCLUSIONS Socioeconomic inequalities were found in the provision and uptake of prenatal care in Barcelona . Uptake was greater in the more advantaged social classes but excessive medicalization was found in all classes . Rationalizing the use of healthcare re sources and reducing excessive medicalization would reduce inequalities in prenatal care in Barcelona
There were factors that are particularly associated with lower rates of use of folic acid supplements .
One of the most important of these is the link with unintended pregnancy , followed by age , socio-economic and ethnic group .
Integrated campaigns can increase the use of folic acid supplements to some extent .
Research trials indicated that : ( i ) printed re sources and the mass media used in isolation are not effective in the longer term ; and ( ii ) health-care-based initiatives can be effective and are more likely to be successful if they include making supplements easily available .
Campaigns and interventions have the potential to exacerbate socio-economic inequalities in folic acid use .
However , even high- quality campaigns that increase use result in under half of women in the target group taking supplements
OBJECTIVE To provide a basis for making recommendations on the potential to improve use of folic acid supplements in the UK , particularly among low-income and young women .