Trends in Neural Tube Defects in Australia

In response to mounting evidence from observational studies and randomised trials of the benefits of periconceptional folic acid in reducing the risk of neural tube defects, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) recommended that women planning a pregnancy or likely to become pregnant should be offered advice about dietary folate and periconceptional folic acid supplementation. Subsequently an NHMRC Expert Panel on Folate Fortification recommended voluntary folate fortification of foods.

In this section:

Prepared by Paul Lancaster and Tara Hurst, Australian Food and Nutrition Monitoring Unit for Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care
2001
ISBN: 0 642 82048 1

PDF printable version of Trends in Neural Tube Defects in Australia (PDF 455 KB)

For further information please phone the Population Health Division on 1800 020 103 (and ask for extension 8654) or email PHD Frontdesk.

Help with accessing large documents

When accessing large documents (over 500 KB in size), it is recommended that the following procedure be used:

Click the link with the RIGHT mouse button
Choose "Save Target As.../Save Link As..." depending on your browser
Select an appropriate folder on a local drive to place the downloaded file

Attempting to open large documents within the browser window (by left-clicking) may inhibit your ability to continue browsing while the document is opening and/or lead to system problems.

Help with accessing PDF documents

To view PDF (Portable Document Format) documents, you will need to have a PDF reader installed on your computer. A number of PDF readers are available through the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) Web Guide website.