Our employees wore green and jeans this week to raise awareness of folic acid and its benefits before and during pregnancy.

Our employees wore green and jeans this week to raise awareness of folic acid and its benefits before and during pregnancy.

January is Birth Defects Prevention Month, and January 10 through 16 is Folic Acid Awareness Week, which are great opportunities to highlight a simple way that women can help prevent birth defects. A daily multivitamin with 400 mcg folic acid is important for all women of childbearing age, whether they are planning to have a baby or not. Daily folic acid before and during early pregnancy can prevent up to 70 percent of serious birth defects of the brain and spine, like spina bifida.

Folic acid is a birth defects prevention success story. We started our Folic Acid Education and Distribution Program in 2002 by distributing multivitamins with 400 mcg folic acid through places such as county health departments and health centers, family planning clinics, and WIC clinics. Power Me A2Z was launched in 2013 to reach women in Arizona ages 18 to 45. The program provides a wealth of resources to empower women to take care of themselves, not only for themselves but also for the health of their families and future children. The program provides resources to help women become and stay healthy, and plan for and create a healthy family.

One of the key resources that Power Me A2Z offers women is a free PowerPack that includes a 90-day supply of multivitamins with folic acid. It’s not too late for a New Year’s resolution to start taking a daily multivitamin with folic acid today. Visit Power Me A2Z online today.