Folic Acid

[MUMMIBOO]

And they are adding it to ALL flour which means that anything with flour in it will have the added folate.
Pregnant women have a responsibility to their baby so they should make sure that they take the supplements that are offered. I do not want them in my bread thankyou.

They are not adding it to ALL flour they are NOT adding it to wholemeal flour!

And the whole point of adding the folic acid to the flour is because of the amount of unplanned pregnancies, folic acid should be taken before you even get pregnant if you are not planning a child then how would you know to take the suppliments?

http://news.scotsman.com/health.cfm?id=527052006

Read this i am not trying to change your mind or tell you what to eat or not to eat im am simply saying that i personally dont mind if they put Folic Acid in my flour!!

[MUMMIBOO]

Originally Posted by jambutty

I think that you are missing the point MUMMIBOO. We all know that different foods contain various vitamins and minerals naturally and we all need them.

What is happening here is the proposal to add certain extra ingredients to foods that do not contain that extra naturally in order to help a very small minority of the population. That is just unacceptable and should never be allowed to happen under any circumstances.

There is absolutely nothing that you can say to justify such outrageous intentions.

Far more people suffer from ‘sticky’ blood so would you like a small dose of Warfarin in your food to try and ensure that you don’t suffer from blood clots?

Cornflakes dont contain it naturally either but nobody complains about that!

They can put warfarin in my food along with the pesticides they use on my veggies and the stuff they put in my food to make it have a longer shelf life, and the alcohol that i drink that will kill my liver and the passive smoking you give me that will kill my lungs!

Put a little of what is good for people in their food and people go up in arms! ban smoking in public places and people go up in arms and then theres the health sector going on about how unhealthy we have all become god forbid you ever get served sprouts!

I give up.

[ANNE]

I'm with Mummiboo on this. I can't see what the problem is. Any body would think the government had said they were going to put cyanid in our flour not something that's good for you.
If they just slipped it in without saying anything I don't think there would be such a fuss.
We happily eat food with E numbers in them and these can be more harmful than a little folic acid.
Simple change your bread to whole meal if you don't want to eat white bread that contains folic acid.

[grannyclaret]

so its back to good old home baking then,,,,,, cant beat it....

[SPUGGIE J]

Very true granny and it always tastes better yum yum.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Not they are not adding to wholemeal flour because wholemeal flour by its very nature already contains folate......but all white flour will have folate added...so not only will you bread have the folate but all your home baking and bought pies and biscuits too......I do not wish to have this addition to my food, and I should be allowed to have the choice.
There was a report in the paper yesterday that Vitamin D reduces the risk of Breast cancer......is that going to be the next thing to be added to our food?
Where will the line be drawn. I have no qualms about some bread being enriched, but it should be clearly marked as such, but there should be a choice. I don't eat cornflakes or other breakfast cereals........and they are not something that is added to many other foods....Flour is used for many things. Mass medication cannot be right.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Are the vitamin manufacturers going to take the folates out of Vitamin B Complex too?.......if not there will be folk suffering from overdose of folic acid.

[SPUGGIE J]

This vitamin minerals etc carry on with food is daft. I work shifts so to be sure of getting a proper RDA due to wierd eating times and habits I take vitamin suppliments every couple of days so at this rate the govenment could have me O/d'ing very easily!

[lettie]

It is the principal of the government stripping away people's choice which irks me. Yes there are unplanned pregnancies, but whose fault is that??? There is no excuse for unplanned pregnancies these days, contaception works effectively when used properly. Women should not only be using the pill but also a barrier method too to prevent against STI's. The number of children affected by Spina Bifida is extremely small compared to the number of deliveries per year.
If the medical profession are worried enough to bring up the issue of B12 deficiency being masked by increased folic acid intake, then the number of people that this could potentially affect must also be of significance.

[Margaret Pilkington]

According to todays paper there is to be more public consultation before any fortification of flour takes place. And in last nights LET three of the local MP's said they were against such measures.

[lettie]

I do hope that the government consider this issue very seriously. They could be on a real sticky wicket if they go ahead with it. Folic Acid is classed as a drug. According to the British National Formulary, it should be given with caution in people with B12 deficiency as it can cause degeneration of the spinal cord in these people. It has not to be used in people with malignant disease. It interacts with the Epilepsy drug Phenytoin and can cause a plasma dilution of Phenytoin within the blood stream, therefore Phenytoin would be less effective at controlling fits.

Do the government wish to be sued by people experiencing increased epileptic fits due to unwanted folic acid supplementation???? If this was the USA, some lawyer would try it...

[Margaret Pilkington]

And so they should. Recently the EU (a pox on their MPs) was considering banning vitamin supplements....and I don't agree with that either. We are adults and capable of making rational decisions for ourselves....and we take the appropriate responsibility for our actions.

Mass medication is the thin end of the wedge...and I trust this government not one jot, the next thing they could be putting in our food stuff or water could be something far more sinister.

[jambutty]

Mass medication is the thin end of the wedge...and I trust this government not one jot, the next thing they could be putting in our food stuff or water could be something far more sinister.

I’ve been saying that all along Margaret Pilkington yet you still get some people agreeing to adding medicines to our food and water that will benefit the very few. You can bet your sweet life that in years to come when the public start to really rebel (and I don’t mean by noisy demonstrations) we will find tranquillisers in the water AND food.

Instead of clamping down on alcohol consumption and all the problems that, that brings the government extend the drinking hours. It wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that alcohol puddles the brain and prevents people from coherent thought, would it?

It wasn’t too long ago that some *!!* Minister wanted to implement a system where the bath/shower/hot tap water was not so hot that it could scald someone. What next? Central heating systems regulated to a standard temperature for all to prevent sensitive skinned people from burning themselves on the radiators?

This government driven by President (Dictator) Blair has taken one step too far down the ‘control the masses road’ and it is time that Joe and Josephine Public stood up to be counted.

The UKIP is rapidly becoming a viable alternative to the big three.

[SPUGGIE J]

The more we sit back and let it happen the more the govenment of the day will try regarless of which party is in power. We only complain when there is a possibility it will happen not at the start when it is thrown to others to debate. Is the information held back because they dont want us to know or is it they know we cant be bothered keeping up with whats going on until its to late?

[pendy]

Yeah, okay, let's put anything in food the Government fancies. Too many strokes and heart attacks? - add a bit of Warfarin or Digoxin to the water supply. Never mind that people like me whose blood doesn't clot very well might die of haemorrhage. It might well benefit others. And it hasn't escaped me that this is the thin end - valium for the masses, anyone? After all, we live in a society prone to stress, it might do everybody some good to add a spot of diazepam to the drinking water. When we are all lying backwards, burbling at the sky, won't governing the country be easy!