Folate is a water-soluble B vitamin that wears many hats in the role of good health. It is important in the synthesis of DNA, our unique genetic map. Folate also works with vitamin B12, developing red blood cells to carry oxygen through the blood. Folate vs. Folic Acid Folate is the general term referring to the form found in non-fortified foods and serves as the category term for all forms of the vitamin, including folic acid and folacin.
Folic acid is the term used when a food is fortified with the vitamin.
A deficiency in folate can lead to neural tube defects of the brain and spinal cord of the fetus. In about the first three to four weeks of pregnancy, the tube that will encase the brain and spinal cord of the fetus closes. A neural tube defect occurs when the tube fails to close properly. Most women don't even know they are pregnant when this development takes place. This is why it is so important that all women in their reproductive years take in 400 micrograms of folic acid in the form of a supplement or in fortified foods.