![nutrition label with folic acid highlighted](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20120924231505im_/http://healthfinder.gov/prevention/glmedia/folic_acid2.jpg)
Check the label for folic acid.
It’s easy to get the folic acid you need. Just eat a bowl of cereal with 100% DV of folic acid OR take a vitamin every day.
Check the label.
When you are at the grocery store, find foods with folic acid in them. Look for cereals that have 100% DV of folic acid. Check out this list of cereals for some examples.
Folic acid is also in fortified foods like enriched breads, pastas, and other grains. Check the label.
Make it easy to remember.
If you take a vitamin:
- Take it at the same time every day. For example, take it when you brush your teeth in the morning or with your breakfast.
- Leave the vitamin bottle someplace where you will notice it every day, like on the kitchen or bathroom counter.
What about cost?
Folic acid supplements (pills) are covered under the Affordable Care Act, the health care reform law passed in 2010. Depending on your insurance plan, you may be able to get folic acid supplements at no cost to you.
Talk to your insurance company to find out what this means for you. For information about other services covered by the Affordable Care Act, visit HealthCare.gov.
Eat healthy.
A healthy diet includes foods with folate (a different type of folic acid). In addition to eating cereal that has 100% DV of folic acid or taking a vitamin, it’s important for women to eat foods with folate, such as:
- Spinach and other greens
- Oranges and orange juice
- Beans and peas
Check out this list of foods with folate.