Of those respondents who dieted, bingeing on favorite foods and limiting only fat, but not calories, were cited as reasons for not achieving an ideal weight. According to John Foreyt, Ph.D., Director of the Nutrition Research Clinic at the Baylor College of Medicine, counting fat at the exclusion of calories, and bingeing are two symptoms of a diet gone awry. Foreyt counsels his patients to be less concerned with weight, and more concerned with adopting a healthy lifestyle. Previous research suggested colon cancer protection for men. This time, researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that of the 88,000 plus women who participated in the Nurses' Health Study, those that took a multivitamin supplement containing folate for at least 15 years had only one-quarter the risk of colon cancer compared to those who did not take a supplement.
Researchers think that folate helps protect against DNA damage.
Preliminary research has also suggested that both folate and vitamin B12 may play a role in reducing the risk of Alzheimer's disease. A British study found that individuals with Alzheimer's disease had higher blood levels of homocysteine and lower levels of both B12 and folate. But we don't know whether the blood levels are a cause of Alzheimer's disease or a result. With regard to folate's protection against birth defects, the American Dietetic Association warns that many women still don't realize the vitamin's importance. The average American woman consumes barely half that amount.